The bill drafted by the Finance Ministry and submitted to public consultation last week would drastically reduce restrictions on commercial developments on the coast throughout the country, and weaken the public’s constitutional right to access beaches and shoreline. It would also allow for the legalisation of illegally built businesses on the coast.
 
From the outset the bill was met with intense opposition from environmental organisations, scientific bodies, opposition parties and citizens both in Greece and abroad. The Greek branch of WWF called the bill ‘criminal’ and called on MP’s to not let it reach parliament.
 
“We consider absolutely unjustifiable the comprehensive reduction in legal protections of the natural landscape and natural resources in the name of a chaotic, unsustainable and clearly dubious on economic terms idea of ‘development’” said Theodota Nantsou, head of environmental policy of WWF Greece.
 
Social media was filled with enraged citizens expressing their intense disapproval of the plans with Facebook pages such as this one against the bill, gaining tens of thousands of likes in less than a week. One online petition recently surpassed 100,000 signatures demand the bill be withdrawn. The organizers are now aiming for 200,000 signatures.
 
In the face of the firestorm, the Finance Ministry attempted to defend the bill with a rebuttal of numerous objections raised by its opponents. In a multi-page defence it claimed that the bill would not weaken environmental protections which are the responsibility of the Ministry of the Environment and that the law was necessary to clear up a lack of clarity in existing legislation. It even went so far as to maintain that the bill was not ‘revenue oriented’ although few outside of government circles take this assertion with any seriousness.
 
Crucially junior coalition partner PASOK has said it will oppose the bill in its current form. Press spokesperson and PASOK MP Odysseas Konstantinopoulos said, “the draft law which for the coastline as it has been submitted to public consultation will not pass through parliament,” saying that the party had submitted specific proposals to ensure the protection of the coastline and that the law is in line with European legislation.
 
Several New Democracy MPs including Fotini Pipili and Dora Bakogianni also stated that they would not vote for the bill in its current form.
 
Given that the coalition government has a razor thin majority of 153 in a parliament of 300, it appears unlikely that the bill would survive a vote in parliament. That appears to be behind a minor climbdown on the part of the Prime Minister’s office. Minister of State Dimitris Stamatis said that Antonis Samaras wanted to be fully informed of the results of the public consultation after the European elections of the 25th of May before coming to a final position on the bill.
 
While the bill may not pass in its current form it is highly likely that the government will still attempt to pass it with amendments. What remains to be seen is whether these will amount to anything more than a fig-leaf.