Latvian Prime Minister Valdis Dombrovskis (left) gets interviewed by a journalist. The Latvian media has been closely watching the unstable coalition's latest developments to see if the government is headed toward collapse.
RIGA – Prime Minister Valdis Dombrovskis has said that he will not sign the People’s Party’s economic rescue plan.
Dombrovskis told the “900 Seconds” television program Wednesday morning that he would not sign a bilateral agreement with the People’s Party without the support of other coalition members.
“The coalition partners are [private_supervisor]ready to study these proposals and provide their assessment in two weeks. Then we can return to this conversation,” the prime minister said.
The People’s Party offered the plan last week and, issuing a veiled ultimatum, suggested that, if the prime minister didn’t sign on to it, the party would consider working with the opposition or even possibly leaving the coalition. Officials from the party also said that waiting two weeks for an answer would be unacceptable.
The party, which is fighting for its political survival, is playing a dangerous game. The party desperately wants to disassociate itself from the government and the IMF-brokered bailout plan, but party bosses also realize that creating political instability with just a half-year to go until elections could backfire.
To compensate, the party, led by business magnate Andris Šķēle, is scurrying to demonstrate itself as the savior of Latvia’s battered economy, where nearly one-fourth of all working age people are out of a job. Hence, the rescue plan and the ultimatum.
Dombrovskis, a member of the New Era Party, seemed tepid about the proposals in the plan. “Some proposals lean toward being populist,” the prime minister told 900 Seconds. “This refers to the new tax policy proposals and, for instance, a claim that 100 million lats (€142 million) could be saved by reducing the number of ministries to eight or nine.”
The prime minister has refused to speculate what he would do if the People’s Party pulled out of the coalition, but some have speculated the government could survive the next six months in minority form. [/private_supervisor] [private_subscription 1 month]ready to study these proposals and provide their assessment in two weeks. Then we can return to this conversation,” the prime minister said.
The People’s Party offered the plan last week and, issuing a veiled ultimatum, suggested that, if the prime minister didn’t sign on to it, the party would consider working with the opposition or even possibly leaving the coalition. Officials from the party also said that waiting two weeks for an answer would be unacceptable.
The party, which is fighting for its political survival, is playing a dangerous game. The party desperately wants to disassociate itself from the government and the IMF-brokered bailout plan, but party bosses also realize that creating political instability with just a half-year to go until elections could backfire.
To compensate, the party, led by business magnate Andris Šķēle, is scurrying to demonstrate itself as the savior of Latvia’s battered economy, where nearly one-fourth of all working age people are out of a job. Hence, the rescue plan and the ultimatum.
Dombrovskis, a member of the New Era Party, seemed tepid about the proposals in the plan. “Some proposals lean toward being populist,” the prime minister told 900 Seconds. “This refers to the new tax policy proposals and, for instance, a claim that 100 million lats (€142 million) could be saved by reducing the number of ministries to eight or nine.”
The prime minister has refused to speculate what he would do if the People’s Party pulled out of the coalition, but some have speculated the government could survive the next six months in minority form. [/private_subscription 1 month] [private_subscription 4 months]ready to study these proposals and provide their assessment in two weeks. Then we can return to this conversation,” the prime minister said.
The People’s Party offered the plan last week and, issuing a veiled ultimatum, suggested that, if the prime minister didn’t sign on to it, the party would consider working with the opposition or even possibly leaving the coalition. Officials from the party also said that waiting two weeks for an answer would be unacceptable.
The party, which is fighting for its political survival, is playing a dangerous game. The party desperately wants to disassociate itself from the government and the IMF-brokered bailout plan, but party bosses also realize that creating political instability with just a half-year to go until elections could backfire.
To compensate, the party, led by business magnate Andris Šķēle, is scurrying to demonstrate itself as the savior of Latvia’s battered economy, where nearly one-fourth of all working age people are out of a job. Hence, the rescue plan and the ultimatum.
Dombrovskis, a member of the New Era Party, seemed tepid about the proposals in the plan. “Some proposals lean toward being populist,” the prime minister told 900 Seconds. “This refers to the new tax policy proposals and, for instance, a claim that 100 million lats (€142 million) could be saved by reducing the number of ministries to eight or nine.”
The prime minister has refused to speculate what he would do if the People’s Party pulled out of the coalition, but some have speculated the government could survive the next six months in minority form. [/private_subscription 4 months] [private_subscription 1 year]ready to study these proposals and provide their assessment in two weeks. Then we can return to this conversation,” the prime minister said.
The People’s Party offered the plan last week and, issuing a veiled ultimatum, suggested that, if the prime minister didn’t sign on to it, the party would consider working with the opposition or even possibly leaving the coalition. Officials from the party also said that waiting two weeks for an answer would be unacceptable.
The party, which is fighting for its political survival, is playing a dangerous game. The party desperately wants to disassociate itself from the government and the IMF-brokered bailout plan, but party bosses also realize that creating political instability with just a half-year to go until elections could backfire.
To compensate, the party, led by business magnate Andris Šķēle, is scurrying to demonstrate itself as the savior of Latvia’s battered economy, where nearly one-fourth of all working age people are out of a job. Hence, the rescue plan and the ultimatum.
Dombrovskis, a member of the New Era Party, seemed tepid about the proposals in the plan. “Some proposals lean toward being populist,” the prime minister told 900 Seconds. “This refers to the new tax policy proposals and, for instance, a claim that 100 million lats (€142 million) could be saved by reducing the number of ministries to eight or nine.”
The prime minister has refused to speculate what he would do if the People’s Party pulled out of the coalition, but some have speculated the government could survive the next six months in minority form. [/private_subscription 1 year]
— This is a paid article. To subscribe or extend your subscription, click here.
