ND leader submits proposal to halt planned pension cuts
Main opposition leader Kyriakos Mitsotakis announced on Thursday New Democracy will table a proposed amendment calling for a freeze in the planned pension cuts that will take effect as of 2019.
The moves come as party leaders debate on post-bailout austerity in Greece.
“I am submitting an amendment to prevent pension cuts. We will vote for it because we are against their reduction. We voted against them when you were voting in favour of them. Let’s now vote [for the amendment] together.So we can finally see who is the hypocrite and who is telling the truth to the Greek people,” he said, addressing government lawmakers.
Mitsotakis was responding to government accusations that ND wants the pension cuts, saying they were “completely unnecessary” and are the result of Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras’ “personal unreliability.”
Earlier in the debate, Democratic Alliance leader Fofi Gennimata and the Communist Party also submitted a similar proposal during their speech.
According to Democratic Alliance, there is scope for the cuts to be revoked as Greece is forecast to produce primary budget surpluses.
The developments follow comments by European Economic and Monetary Affairs Commissioner Pierre Moscovici during his visit to Athens earlier this week which suggested some flexibility on agreed-to post-bailout austerity.
The Greek Parliament has already approved more pension cuts and tax increases for 2019-2020 after the end of the third bailout in August.
