Portugal's Socialist Prime Minister Antonio Costa on Friday threatened to quit if parliament approves a law which would end a freeze on teachers' salaries, saying it would cause public spending to balloon.
"The final approval of this initiative will force the government to submit its resignation," Costa said in during a televised news conference after he held talks with the president.
His comments came after a parliamentary education committee on Thursday voted to end the wage freeze on teachers' salaries with the surprise backing of his minority government's far-left allies, the Communists and Left Bloc, as well as conservative parties. Only the ruling Socialists voted against the measure.
The committee vote still needs to be ratified by the full parliament. No date has been set for the vote but Portuguese media said it would take place around May 15.
The row over the teacher's wage freeze comes ahead of European Parliament elections in Portugal on May 26, and a general election slated for October 6.
Costa said ending the wage freeze for teachers would require the government to do the same for other public sector workers, which would lead to an annual increase in public spending of 800 million euros ($895 million) and undermine efforts to balance the budget.
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He also warned that this extra spending would have to be either made up through "significantly higher taxes" or steep public spending cuts.
"We will not unfreeze wages today only to have to freeze them tomorrow," the prime minister said.
"It would be a lack of respect, now that were are at the end of the legislature and nearing elections, to spoil what has cost the Portuguese people so much" to achieve and which would "represent a break with out commitments and a threat to the international credibility of out country. And this is not negotiable."
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