ATHENS, July 15. /TASS/. The Greek parliament is due to vote Wednesday to pass laws on reforms and austerity measures aimed at securing the deal with international creditors.
The document has been drawn up based on the creditors’ demands after a crucial eurozone summit where an agreement was reached with Greece on reforms in exchange for the third bailout worth up to €90 billion ($99 billion).
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The bill is expected to be adopted and backed by almost all the leading parties, besides the government. The measures include raising VAT rates, increasing taxes, scrapping special tax breaks for the country’s islands and limiting early retirement.
A source in Greece’s ruling Syriza party told TASS "after the law is passed, a broad cabinet reshuffle is likely to be carried out to improve its work."
The cabinet members who are likely to be removed from office are Panagiotis Lafazanis, the minister of productive reconstruction, environment and energy, and Dimitris Stratoulis, the first deputy health minister, who abstained from the vote in the parliament on the Greek proposals for the creditors.
Another reason is that according to Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, "people do not want the government to include people from the old political system," the source said, adding that the current Syriza-Independent Greeks coalition will remain and no changes are expected here.