Independent lawmakers form new parliamentary group
Eleven of the 12 independent MPs have clubbed together to form a parliamentary group, Parliament Speaker Evangelos Meimarakis said on Thursday.
The lawmakers, who became independents after being ousted from several parties over the last 17 months, are to unite under the title “Independent Democratic Parliamentarians.”
They will form the eighth and smallest parliamentary group in the House, just one short of the Communist Party, which has 12 MPs.
The only independent lawmaker who did not join the group is Theodora Tzakri, who was ousted from PASOK on Sunday for failing to back the government in a no-confidence vote.
The creation of the new parliamentary group, which will be led by Kilkis deputy Theodoros Parastatidis, does not necessarily mean that the lawmakers will vote the same way on legislation. The group, however, will be eligible for some privileges, such as its own office in Parliament.
