Argentine Senate Approves Emergency Pension Hike, Defying President Milei
Argentine senior citizens protest low retirement pensions, July 3, 2025. X/ @BI_Noticias
July 11, 2025 Hour: 9:02 am
He rejects the legislation, arguing it would increase public spending and undermine its goal of achieving a balanced budget.
On Thursday, Argentina’s Senate passed a law granting an emergency increase in retirement pensions, a measure far-right President Javier Milei has repeatedly opposed.
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The bill, which had already been approved by the Chamber of Deputies on June 4, was passed in the Senate with 52 votes in favor and four abstentions. The new law, pushed forward by opposition parties, establishes an “exceptional and emergency” 7.2% increase in retirement pensions.
Argentine retirees have long protested their meager pensions outside the gates of Parliament every Wednesday. Most pensioners receive the minimum monthly pension, which this month amounted to roughly US$290 — below the poverty line.
With 39 votes in favor, 14 against, and one abstention, the Senate also approved a bill extending a debt-payment plan with the national pension system. The plan allows older adults who have not made all the legally required contributions to still access a pension.
The Milei administration rejected the legislation, arguing it would increase public spending and undermine its goal of achieving a balanced budget at all costs.
The far-right ruling party, Freedom Advances (La Libertad Avanza), also challenged the validity of Thursday’s Senate session, claiming it was “self-convened” by the opposition rather than summoned by the Senate leadership. The party also questioned the lack of prior approval from parliamentary committees for some of the bills.
On Thursday, the Argentine Senate also approved an emergency law for people with disabilities, which will remain in effect through the end of 2027. The legislation requires the Milei administration to finance disability pensions and strengthen assistance programs for this population.
Additionally, the Senate rejected a presidential veto of a law passed in June declaring a state of emergency in the city of Bahia Blanca, which was severely affected by flooding in March. If the Chamber of Deputies also rejects the veto, the law approved in June will go into effect.
teleSUR/ JF
Source: EFE
