PM appeals for backing ahead of crucial summit in Brussels
Prime Minister George Papandreou on Tuesday appealed for political unity, once again, before heading off for Brussels where his European counterparts are struggling to hammer out a second bailout for debt-ridden Greece within the framework of a broader rescue package for the bloc.
Papandreou, who met with President Karolos Papoulias for the second time in as many days, stressed that this was ?a critical time.? ?There is a need for a clear-headed and calm approach by all political parties, by everyone,? he said.
He ruled out early elections once again and, according to sources, said that the government would not insist on a qualified majority of 180 in Greece?s 300-seat Parliament for the rescue package produced in Brussels. Government sources told Kathimerini that a stronger yes vote would be desirable but that a simple majority would be acceptable. Late on Monday Finance Minister Evangelos Venizelos had suggested that the government would seek the support of 180 MPs when a bailout package goes to Parliament.
In his comments on Tuesday, the premier stressed that banks must also contribute to extracting Greece from its debt crisis. ?They must also shoulder some of the burden,? he said. Papandreou added that he hoped today?s summit would yield solutions. ?We want to bring matters to a head, to turn the page as Greece and as a country,? he said.
However, the prospects for a concrete solution being reached on Thursday appeared dim late on Tuesday. A European Union finance ministers? (Ecofin) meeting, which also had been due to take place on Wednesday, was canceled pending the outcome of the EU leaders? summit. There were suggestions that the Ecofin was canceled because EU leaders might not reach a final agreement on Wednesday and that another summit might have to take place on the weekend.
Meanwhile, political tensions within the ranks of ruling PASOK have been simmering. Transport Minister Yiannis Ragousis and Administrative Reform Minister Dimitris Reppas, who have clashed over the liberalization of the taxi drivers? sector, on Tuesday had another run-in. Reppas intimated that Ragousis was overstepping his authority after the latter sent a circular to the state bodies under his supervision, citing the deadline by which they must draft their lists of employees to join a labor reserve scheme, foreseeing early retirement or redundancy.
