News in English - 24/06/2014
The new bill of the Ministry of Environment was introduced in the Parliament today. The new bill repeals the provisions about residential areas, thus allowing the erection of department stores, malls and enterprises of any kind in any place.
At 7 in the evening the Mayors of Nea Ionia and Nea Philadelphia are meeting to discuss the provisions of the new bill.
The government is introducing, with urgency, the bill about the selling of the Electric Company units. The government spokeswoman Sophia Voultepsi, said that despite the reactions expressed by some PASOK deputies there is no problem within the government.
In the meantime, both the opposition parties and the Electric Company employees have reacted intensely about the selling of the Company.
The government is not justified to proceed to the fragmentation and the selling of the Electric Company, as it does not enjoy the majority of the people's votes and it has no political legitimacy, stresses SYRIZA.
The government is rushing only in order to fulfill the demands of the troika, said the Independent Greeks' Party.
The government plans about the Electric Company will lead to additional burdens to both its employees and the power buyers, said the Greek Communist Party.
On the other hand the Democratic Left Party, adopting once more a conflicting opinion, said that it does not agree with the fragmentation and the selling of the Electric Company, but it agrees with the liberalization of the energy market.
The Electric Company employees are responding to the government plans with 48-hours repeated strikes.
The plea of the 14 people, who were arrested in relation with the case of the three tones of heroin which was found and confiscated, started today and is believed that it will have been completed until Thursday. In the meantime, it is still not clear why the American DEA gave the case and the information to the Coast Guard authorities and not to the Police, since it is surprisng that both the investigations at Filothei and Koropi and the arrests were made by divers of the Coast Guard rather than by men of the Drug Enforcement Agency.
28 sailors who were accused of obstructing transport to the new port of Thassos, due to their participation in a strike, under the cover of the Greek Seamen's and the Greek Workers' Federations, were sentenced to 8 months imprisonment with a 3-year suspension. What is surprising though, is the fact that some time ago they had been acquitted for the same offense.
The teachers gathered today outside the High School of Peristeri, where the school principals are attending seminars, in order to proceed to the evaluation and the subsequent dismissal of teachers. Besides, the Minister of Education refuses to proceed to notice jobs despite the shortcomings in schools.
The administrative employees of the Kapodistrian University of Athens are continuing their strike. In the meantime, the Polytechnic of Athens and the University of Patras buildings are occupied by employees who the government is planning to dismiss. Also, until Sunday the 29th of June all the Technological Institutes in Lamia, Chalkida, Amfissa, Carpenissi and Thiva will remain closed, as they have not received any subsidy up until now.
Public entities and Municipalities will be the basic source from which the Ministry of Administrative Reform will derive the 7000 employees who will be dismissed by the end of 2014.
Islamist rebels kidnapped 60 women and 31 boys in a village in northern Nigeria, according to the Associated Press. The authorities believe that the Boco Haram fighters have the responsibility for the kidnappings.
The leaders of Ukraine and Russia talked peace amid the longstanding tensions between the countries over the grinding unrest in eastern Ukraine. Russian President Vladimir Putin also spoke with the German and French leaders amid regional concern over the crisis. Putin backs an effort to de-escalate tensions in eastern regions and a process to forge a cease-fire and a peace plan.
Weather forecast
The weather is expected to be sunny and hot tomorrow. The weather conditions will favor the transport of dust from Africa. The temperature in Athens will reach 39 degrees Celsius. In Thessaloniki it will reach 35 degrees Celsius.