Athens News Agency: News in English, 12-02-29

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From: The Athens News Agency at <http://www.ana.gr/>

CONTENTS

[01] Parliament passes Memorandum application law

[02] Athens Newspaper Headlines

[03] EP president Schulz addresses Greek MPs

[01] Parliament passes Memorandum application law

Out of the 283 deputies, 202 voted in favour of the bill, 80 against and one deputy voted present. 283 deputies in the 300-member chamber participated in the vote.

Voting in favour of the bill were New Democracy (ND) and PASOK parties, while the Communist Party of Greece (KKE), Popular Orthodox Rally (LAOS), Radical Left Coalition (SYRIZA) and various independent deputies voted against. amna

The bill is part of a set of commitments undertaken by the Greek government as part of the second Memorandum.

[02] Athens Newspaper Headlines

Prime Minister Lucas Papademos' meeting with European Commission president Jose Manuel Barroso on Wednesday evening in Brussels, the retroactive cutbacks in salaries in the private sector and the evaluation of state services and entities as well as the bill introducing generic medicines, dominated the headlines on Wednesday in Athens' dailies.

ADESMEFTOS TYPOS: "Government razing everything in salaries, benefits and tenure!".

AVGHI: "The Left a nightmare for the EU".

DIMOKRATIA: "They're devastating the 'the 435 euros generation '."

ELEFTHEROS TYPOS: "22 percent retroactive cutbacks in private sector salaries".

ESTIA: "Tax rate on everything".

ETHNOS: "French...lessons in public sector".

IMERISSIA: "Development package".

KATHIMERINI: "Four actions for progress".

LOGOS: "Changes in labour relations as from Feb. 14".

NAFTEMPORIKI: "In 'selective bankruptcy' status for procedural reasons".

RIZOSPASTIS: "Labour-wide uprising to avert the salaries' massacre".

TA NEA: "The 'golden' pills - Billion euros war over the changes in medicines".

VRADYNI: "Radical changes in the General Construction Regulation".

[03] EP president Schulz addresses Greek MPs

Addressing deputies in the old senate chamber in Parliament, Schulz said Greece should remain in the Eurozone, noting that the common European currency must be shielded in every way, while attacking those economic approaches that place priority to austeritry and fiscal discipline.amna

On the other hand, the EP president indicated that Greece is obliged to implement the extremely harsh commitments its government has undertaken as necessary. In response to criticism on the policies that accompany the two Memorandums, he reminded that that these decisions have been taken unanimously by the European governments and added that it would be an injustice to attack the German chancellor or the German finance ministry.amna

"Greece must remain in the Euro. This is for the interest of your country but for Europe's interest as well," Schulz told the Greek deputies.

"We must do everything to avert Euro's failure. In the antogonism between the continents, we will survive only as a strong continent through consensus, while as a divided continent we will sink into triviality," he noted.

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