Brazil pension overhaul bill wins by resounding margin in lower house
JULY 10, 2019 / 7:06 AM / UPDATED 7 HOURS AGO
Maria Carolina Marcello, Lisandra Paraguassu
3 MIN READ
BRASILIA (Reuters) - Brazil’s lower house of Congress approved a landmark overhaul of the country’s pension system on Wednesday by a far wider margin than predicted, delivering a resounding victory to the government in its quest to revive public finances.
The lower house passed the main text of the bill by a vote of 379 in favor and 131 opposed, well beyond the 308 votes required. The chamber is expected to vote on any amendments to the bill on Thursday.
House Speaker Rodrigo Maia said he hoped the complete bill could be put to a second, final vote by Friday or early Saturday. That would allow the Senate to take up debate in August after a two-week recess.
Pension reform is the cornerstone of right-wing President Jair Bolsonaro’s economic agenda, aimed at saving the public purse around 1 trillion reais ($263 billion) over the next decade as he tries to close a massive budget gap.
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https://www.reuters.com/article/us-brazil-politics-pensions/brazil-pension-overhaul-bill-wins-by-resounding-margin-in-lower-house-idUSKCN1U51FC?feedType=RSS&feedName=worldNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Reuters%2FworldNews+%28Reuters+World+News%29&&rpc=401