SYRIZA’s coalition partner says it will not back citizenship bill
Coalition partner Independent Greeks said on Friday that it will not support the government’s citizenship bill unless there are changes to four articles.
The right-wing party voted in favor of the draft law at committee level but said on Friday that Alternate Minister for Immigration Policy Tasia Christodoulopoulou had failed to incorporate the party’s suggestions in the final version of the bill.
One of the points on which Independent Greeks disagrees is that the would-be law foresees second-generation migrants being eligible for Greek citizenship once they have enrolled at primary school, but only if their parents have lived legally in Greece for five years prior to the applicant’s birth.
The nationalists say that eligibility should only apply when the child has finished primary school. Centrist To Potami shares the same view.
Christodoulopoulou said earlier this week she estimates that up to 100,000 people will be able to gain citizenship if the bill is passed.
