BUENOS AIRES, June 28. /TASS/. The Chamber of Deputies (lower house of the National Congress, the Argentinian parliament) has approved amendments to the bill introduced by the Senate (upper house) on a package of reforms proposed by President Javier Milei to deregulate the economy.
A total of 147 lawmakers supported the bill, 107 were against it and two abstained.
"Approved. The executive branch will be informed of the decision," Chamber of Deputies President Martin Menem said. The document can now be signed by the president.
The government’s previous attempt to pass the bill was blocked by the moderate opposition. As a result, the document was sent to the Senate, where the government's Liberty Advances alliance had to amend it in order for it to advance through parliament. In particular, they removed a provision from the document that would have privatized Aerolineas Argentinas, the Correo Argentino post service, and the Television Publica company that runs the state radio and television stations.
In addition to the privatization of a number of other state enterprises, the approved document grants the president special powers, reforms the labor code in favor of employers, creates incentives to encourage large investments, and provides for a tax amnesty. After 12 hours of deliberations, lawmakers also approved a separate tax reform bill.
This is the government's second attempt to get a reform package through Congress. The first version contained more than 600 articles and was sent to Congress in late December. After an unsuccessful provision-by-provision vote in February, the government withdrew the bill.
In his first speech as head of state, Javier Milei, who took office on December 10, said that the country was in a dire situation and that major reforms were needed in the economy. The libertarian politician favors minimal government intervention in the economy and believes that cutting spending is the answer to the country’s economic problems. According to researchers at the Pontifical Catholic University of Argentina, the country's poverty rate rose from 49.5% to 55% in the first quarter of the year amid the Milei government's sweeping changes. The country's unemployment rate rose from 5.7% to 7.7% during the same period.