Greek government survives no-confidence motion vote

Greece's ruling coalition early Monday survived a no-confidence motion, submitted by the opposition last week over a recent police raid on the headquarters of former state television broadcaster ERT. During a roll-call vote held at the end of a three-day debate, 153 deputies voted against the censure motion, 124 voted in favor and 17 abstained. The conservative-led coalition government of Prime Minister Antonis Samaras with socialists, which held 155 seats in the 300-member strong assembly, passed the test but lost one lawmaker. Theodora Tzakris, a legislator from the socialist PASOK party, voted against the coalition and was swiftly ousted from PASOK's parliamentary group, while a deputy of Samaras' center-right New Democracy party was absent for health reasons. In an address shortly before the vote, Alexis Tsipras, leader of the left-wing opposition SYRIZA party, said the motion was tabled in protest of the government's "failure to fulfill all promises made before last year's elections." He called for a new election in the recession-hit country, saying the government should be responsible for a "destructive policy" that leads to more austerity measures. Responding to Tsipras' remarks, Samaras dismissed the allegation as a risky ploy at a time when Greece continues negotiations with its international lenders over the terms of further bailout aid to Athens. "Elections will be held in 2016, once the current government's term in office expires," he said. SYRIZA submitted the no-confidence motion last Thursday within hours after police evacuated ERT's premises. The complex in a northern Athens suburb had been occupied since June by a group of former employees who objected to the broadcaster's closure and replacement by a new entity. ERT's overnight shutdown triggered strong reactions from trade unions and parties, which culminated in the withdrawal of the third junior partner -- the moderate Democratic Left party -- from the coalition government. Despite the pressure, Samaras' government insisted on the broadcaster's closure and the layoff of its 2,500 employees as part of its policies to streamline public services to address the country's debt crisis.