An off-duty policeman has killed three people and wounded two others in a suspected shooting incident in southern Slovakia, according to reports.

Prague braced for flooding today and 10,000 people were evacuated from their homes in a south-eastern town as rivers, swollen by rain and melting snow, rose to dangerous levels.

Slovakia’s former authoritarian prime minister edged out the expected favourite in the presidential election and advanced to a second round against a former political ally, according to preliminary results released today.

Car manufacturer MG Rover is considering Slovakia as a possible location to build its new £280m (€398m) production plant, official Slovak news agency TASR has reported.