New Democracy and PASOK walked out of Parliament on Tuesday before MPs passed the government’s proposed changes to the public administration, including the rehiring of civil servants sacked by the previous coalition.
The conservatives left after Alternate Minister for Public Administration Giorgos Katrougalos accepted 16 of 58 amendments to the bill proposed by lawmakers. Of those accepted, 15 were from SYRIZA deputies. In opposition, the leftists had been critical of previous governments for regularly allowing amendments and had promised not to follow a similar tactic in government.
PASOK walked out in protest at what the Socialists see as a conflict of interest between Katrougalos’s previous job as a lawyer, when he took on as clients sacked civil servants trying to get their jobs back, and his decision as minister to pass legislation that would lead to the rehiring of sacked bureaucrats.
In the opposition parties’ absence, the new law passed with the support of 157 MPs.
Before walking out, PASOK leader Evangelos Venizelos accused the coalition of undermining the Diavgeia system aimed at increasing government transparency. His attack came in the wake of the government submitting an amendment allowing for some ministerial decisions to be implemented before they have been published online.
Source: Kathimerini
