Government, opposition exchange fire over PM's economic aid plan during budget debate
- Written by E.Tsiliopoulos
A debate in parliament on the 2017 state budget resumed on Friday morning with the government defending its policies and noting the steady steps taken towards exiting the crisis and the opposition focusing its criticism on Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras’ announced economic assistance for low-income pensioners and the suspension of the VAT rise on the islands of the northern Aegean.
SYRIZA MP Dimitris Rizos accused those who attack the government that they are “judging others by their own standards”, adding it will continue efforts to help weaker social groups “ransacked by the previous policies of New Democracy and PASOK”.
On his side, Democratic Coalition MP Kostas Skandalidis decried Tsipras’ announcements as “benefit talk for the impoverished pensioners” which constitutes “a confession of defeat”.
Communist Party MP Kostas Stergiou said the measures announced on Thursday throw “breadcrumbs” to pensioners and can only be seen as a “provocation and mockery”.
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