Countdown for elections begins following debate

TV viewers get their one and only glimpse of leaders being questioned

TV cameras are seen yesterday lined up outside the headquarters of the state-run broadcaster ERT, which hosted the televised debate between the leaders of the six parties competing for parliamentary seats in the election.

The leaders of the six parties competing for parliamentary seats in just over a week took part yesterday in the only televised debate before the general election without providing voters with any major surprises.

Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis began by defending his decision not to sack any ministers or separate the Public Works and Environment Ministry in the wake of the wildfires this summer.

“You cannot make administrative changes in the heat of the moment,” said the prime minister.

He later made it clear that New Democracy would not enter into a coalition with other parties if it does not win an outright majority.

Breaking with the strict rules of the debate, which prevented any straying from the subject and discussion between the politicians, George Papandreou picked up on Karamanlis’s answer even though the PASOK leader had been asked about pensions.

“It is like he is talking about another country,” said the PASOK leader of the prime minister.

Returning to the original question, Papandreou vowed not to increase the retirement age or to decrease pensions. “Money is not the problem… it is a question of political will,” said Papandreou.

The PASOK leader continued throughout the debate to respond to the answers given by the prime minister. Some of the six journalists asking the questions also bent the rules by asking off-topic questions.

On foreign policy, Karamanlis rejected criticism from the leader of Democratic Revival, Stelios Papathemelis, that the government had “abandoned” negotiations with the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia over its name.

The premier made it clear that Greece is willing to veto FYROM’s entry into NATO and the European Union if agreement is not reached.

On the economy, the leader of Synaspismos Left Coalition, Alekos Alavanos, charged the government with “auctioning off the family silver” via privatizations and not having a coherent plan to create jobs and boost the economy. Karamanlis defended his administration’s economic record but stopped short of committing to not increasing VAT.