Greece: Mitsotakis' government survives no-confidence vote

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
27 Jan 2023 16:01

The 300-seat Greek parliament rejects a no-confidence vote opposition leader Alexis Tsipras called for earlier.

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis speaks with members of his government and other lawmakers during a parliamentary debate, in Athens, Greece, January 27, 2023 (Reuters).

A no-confidence vote was rejected by the 300-seat Greek parliament, on Friday, following the wiretapping scandal the Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis was embroiled in earlier. As such, Mitsotakis' government survived the vote as 156 deputies voted against it while 143 voted in favor of no confidence.

"The motion of no confidence in the government put forward by the SYRIZA-Progressive Alliance Coalition of the Radical Left has been rejected," the chairman announced via the parliamentary TV channel.

Earlier on Wednesday, Greece's main opposition leader Alexis Tsipras called for a no-confidence vote in the government over a long-running wiretap scandal, which he claimed the Prime Minister had personally orchestrated.

Kyriakos Mitsotakis' conservative government came under heightened scrutiny after a bombshell media story in November claimed that state monitoring had targeted more than 30 lawmakers, journalists, and business executives.

The former premier said during a parliament session that Mitsotakis was the "mastermind and chief behind this criminal network," after divulging that a minister and five top defense officials had been under state surveillance.