Poland's government of the nationalist Law and Justice (PiS) party won a vote of confidence in the lower house of parliament on Wednesday ahead of elections next year in which it hopes to strengthen its support base dented by a corruption scandal.
Lower house of Polish parliment, the Sejm, gave the vote of confidence to Prime Minister's Mateusz Morawiecki's government. The head of the cabinet had asked the Sejm on Wednesday before noon for an "assessment of the last year and the last three years" of the United Right's governing.
In favour of the motion there were 231 MPs, whereas 181 were against. Two MPs abstained.
During the parliamentary debate on Wednesday, PM Morawiecki said he hoped that Poles would entrust Law and Justice to remain at the helm of country in next year's elections. He also invited the opposition to cooperation and implementation of a "wonderful change".
Morawiecki underscored that his government's absolute priority is raising the standard of living in Poland to the level of West-European countries.
The prime minister also reassured in his address that the prices of electricity won't go up next year, emphasised Poland's relationship with the European Union, called upon the opposition for cooperation and thanked his ministers for the job they have done so far.
(No) confidence?
Poland's Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said on Wednesday he will call for a vote of confidence in the government to ensure it has a mandate for its reforms before this week's summit of European Union leaders.
Morawiecki's move came a day after the largest oppostion party, Civic Platform, called for a vote of no confidence for the cabinet, citing the recent scandal in the Financial Supervision Authority, among other reasons.
Morawiecki's nationalist and eurosceptic Law and Justice (PiS) party has overhauled the judiciary and taken more control over public media - attracting criticism from the EU and from rights groups who have accused Warsaw of undermining the rule of law.
With a year left until national elections, the party has shown signs of rowing back on some of the changes - for example letting Supreme Court judges who had been forced to retire return to work - as it seeks to broaden its support base amid signs that its support might be waning.
"It's been three years since PiS came to power ... and we have seen a decisive change in how economic and social policy is viewed in Poland," Morawiecki told lawmakers.
PiS has grown increasingly isolated in the EU because of accusations at home and abroad of a tilt towards authoritarianism.
In recent months, it was also rattled by allegations of corruption at the financial regulator and anger amid some voters over its decision to celebrate Poland's century of independence with far-right groups.
Autor: gf / Źródło: TVN24 International, Reuters
Źródło zdjęcia głównego: tvn24