Portugese Vote
- June 8th, 2011
- Posted by EUEditor
Voting in the Portugese elections (5.6.11) produced a clear victory for the centre-right Social Democratic Party, mandating a privatisation and government austerity program.
The liberal-conservatives, led by the incoming Prime Minister, Pedro Passos Coelho, will govern in coalition with a right-of-centre third party, the CDS-PP.
The defeated Socialists, in power for 13 of the last 16 years, had been forced to resign after failing to get a similar package through the parliament.
It was a consequence of the global financial crisis; part of an agreement to reduce government liabilities over a period of three years, in return for preferential loans from the European Union and the International Monetary Fund totaling €78-billion (A$106.7-billion; xe.com, 7.6.11).
In Greece, facing the same crisis over sovereign debt, and similar demands for an austerity program, large protests were again under way on the weekend, demanding relief from reducing wages and job cuts.
Reference
Shrikesh Laxmidas, “Portugal vote winner to face daunting job under bailoutâ€, Reuters, London, 4.6.11. http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/06/04/us-portugal-election-idUSTRE75311B20110604, (7.6.11).
Joao Lima, “Portugal’s Social Democrats Win Parliamentary Electionsâ€, Bloomberg, NY, 6.6.11. http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-06-06/portugal-s-social-democrats-win-parliamentary-elections-table-.html, (7.6.11).
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