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Greek Budget 2013 Voting: Not Without Mass Protests

Sunday, November 11, 2012 13:32

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(Before It's News)

There can’t be a any anti-social bill voting without protests. Private sector union GSEE has called for a protest rally, Sunday afternoon to protest the Budget 2013. A budget that contains sharp cuts and will put the seal to Austerity bill voted last Wednesday. Cuts in wages and pensions, a thin social welfare, a derailed health care system…

The government seems confident that the voting today will bring better results than the one of Austerity bill that passed with marginal majority of 153 votes.

Nea Dimocratia, PASOK and Democratic Left are certain that they will survive the voting with only a few losses. According to Greek media, the government estimates that the Budget 2013 bill will pass with 167-168 votes.

ND: all 126 MPs are expected to vote YES.

PASOK: its 26 MPs are expected to vote YES and even one from the MPs who were expelled form the party after they voted No oon Wednesday

DEMLEFT: 2 MPs are expected to vote NO, while 2-3 more allegedly tend to vote “Present”. Should these MPs refuse to follow the party line (YES) leader Fotis Kouvelis might be obliged to expel them, something he did not do after the Austerity bill voting.

Opposition parties are expected to down vote.

The voting will take place right after midnight.

Budget 2013 and Austerity bill are preconditions for Greece to receive the 31-billion-euro tranche.

The protest will start at 5 o’ clock in the afternoon outside the Parliament at Syntagma Square. Protest rallies will take place also in other Greek cities like Thessaloniki.

Metro stations ‘Syntagma’, ‘Panepistimio” and ‘Evangelismos’ will be closed to public after 2 p.m.