Judges to convene on law permitting TV license auction
The Council of State, the country’s highest administrative court, is to convene on Monday and on Wednesday to discuss the constitutionality of a controversial government auction of television licenses, amid growing concerns in the ranks of the coalition over the possible repercussions of the final ruling.
Last week the court upheld appeals lodged against the auction by six television channels. This week, judges are to decide whether a law drafted by State Minister Nikos Pappas, which reduced the number of nationwide licenses to four and gave the government the right to conduct a license auction, is in line with the Constitution.
The sessions come amid rising tensions between the government and the Greek judiciary.
A government reshuffle that Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras is said to be planning, possibly for this week, is believed to be in part an attempt to distract public attention from the television license debacle and his failure to elicit concrete commitments from Greece’s international creditors on debt relief.
