Bill on loans moratorium splits parties in coalition
The coalition government was locked in a fresh dispute on Tuesday when PASOK and Democratic Left refused to allow a bill allowing some households to repay their bank loans over longer periods to be rushed through Parliament as Prime Minister Antonis Samaras’s New Democracy had wanted.
The two smaller coalition partners refused to allow the express procedure, which would have allowed the draft law, which had been agreed with the troika, to be passed through Parliament on Wednesday. Instead, there will be a longer debate and the measure is likely to be put to a vote on Monday.
Samaras and his aides had hoped for a swift conclusion to the protracted discussions over the bill as they want to ensure there will be no snags with regard to Greece receiving its next loan tranche. New Democracy sources suggested that the objections voiced by the coalition partners had more to do with PASOK’s efforts to put Samaras in his place rather than any genuine concerns about the would-be legislation.
The bill allows financially troubled households a moratorium of up to 48 months on their loan or mortgage repayments. There are certain criteria that the bank customers have to fill and their loan must be secured against a property that has a taxable value of no more than 180,000 euros.
