Czech Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka will submit the resignation of his government after an escalation of a clash with billionaire Finance Minister Andrej Babis, Bloomberg.com writes.

In a surprise move, Sobotka said Tuesday he will submit the motion to President Milos Zeman this week. The move follows last week’s comments by Sobotka that Babis may have engaged in “tax tricks or even tax evasion” as he built his empire, allegations that the minister has rejected. The premier said early elections were one option. A regularly scheduled ballot is set for October.

Source: Bloomberg Politics

Read more details in Czech here.

According to Radio Praha, the prime minister said that if the government resigned the coalition parties could hold talks on forming a new cabinet. However, that would involve resolving outstanding issues surrounding Mr. Babiš in order to bring an end to conflicts of interest. Otherwise, the parties could work toward calling new elections, he said.

For his part, Mr. Babiš told journalists he had been surprised by the PM’s announcement, described it as the desperate act of a desperate man. He said the best solution would be for the government to serve out its term as a government in resignation.