Milei succeeds in preventing the increase in pensions from passing in Congress

Buenos Aires. Argentine President Javier Milei scored a political victory on Wednesday after securing support in Congress from allied sectors to prevent the passage of an increase in retirement benefits that he had recently vetoed.

The most combative opposition failed in its attempt to gather the necessary votes to insist on the law, which was approved at the end of August and then vetoed by Milei on the grounds that it would unbalance the public accounts. While the vote was taking place, unions and social organizations protested in the vicinity of Congress demanding an increase in pensions at a time when inflation is around 236 percent annually.

A total of 153 deputies voted in favor of insisting on the norm vetoed by the president, compared to 87 who were opposed and 8 who abstained. To reverse the veto, the opposition needed to gather two thirds of the votes —166—, so the presidential decision remained in force.

Milei, an ultra-liberal who has made a zero deficit and cuts in public spending his main objective, vetoed on September 2 the law to reform the retirement and pension system promoted by the opposition.

Several legislators from pro-dialogue political parties who approved the law at that time have now decided not to challenge the presidential veto.

Milei had argued that the law seriously hampered the sustainability of public finances because it entailed an extraordinary source of financing through debt or tax increases.

After the presidential veto was announced, opponents warned that they would insist on the initiative in Congress.

The legislation rejected by the president included, in addition to the increase in pensions to compensate for the loss of purchasing power due to the abrupt rise in prices at the beginning of the year, their automatic updating according to monthly inflation and an annual clause to apply when the average salary in the country rises more than inflation.

The government argued that all these measures would mean an expense that “would increase year after year” exposing future generations “to more issuance, debt, inflation and poverty.”