2024-02-02 22:03:42
The Argentine president, Javier Milei, in a recent image. Natasha Pisarenko (AP)
The ‘omnibus law’, the star project of Javier Milei’s Executive, was generally approved this Friday in the Chamber of Deputies of the Argentine Congress by 144 in favor and 109 against and thus passes the first test of its ability to govern with a legislature controlled by the opposition. Of course, he has achieved it in exchange for making a series of significant concessions and taking into account that this step is not the final one, since hundreds of articles have to be debated and voted on independently over the past week.
With his own party controlling less than 15% of the Lower House, the ultra-liberal has had the support of the PRO party and two other more moderate parties, the Unión Cívica Radical and Hacemos por Nuestro País. To achieve this final approach, Milei has disregarded the key privatization of the oil company YPF SA and reduced the scope and duration of the emergency powers he granted himself upon arrival. A few days ago, a court even overturned the labor reform.
The latest version of the bill could also exclude many more state-owned companies from privatization from an original list of 41 and strip even more of emergency executive powers, according to a version of the draft legislation shared with Bloomberg News.
Milei’s sister and advisor, Karina, personally went to congress to negotiate last-minute changes with legislators. Economy Minister Luis Caputo announced last week that the government would shelve the entire fiscal part of the bill, equivalent to around 1.8% of gross domestic product, after vehement opposition to export duties. and the changes in the pension formula.
Allied lawmakers argued the items would hurt farmers and retirees, so the government abandoned its cut measures entirely, including a measure that would have broadened the tax base, although it promised to claw back some later.
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