The Government declared Aerolíneas Argentinas “subject to privatization”

With the signature of the president Javier Milei, was published tonight decree 873/24 which allows the national administration to take the first step to get rid of the state company. After that, The declaration will be communicated to the National Congress, which will have the final say in the process.

After being left off the list of companies to be privatized in the Law Bases, The ruling party thus revives the idea of sell Argentine Airlines, within the framework of the conflict with the aeronautical unions and the strikes that have occurred in recent weeks.

The Government advances with the privatization of Aerolíneas Argentinas

Among the reasons given by the Government in the decree, they point out that The National Treasury “is not in a position to maintain a highly deficient company through the contribution of hundreds of millions of pesos that come from the efforts of the inhabitants of the ARGENTINE REPUBLIC.”

Furthermore, they argue that “the privatization of the company and its operation under market conditions will allow better service provisionthe care of the public coffers and, mainly, that Argentines stop financing the deficit of an inefficient company.”

Along these lines, they maintain that the State aims to “allocate limited fiscal resources to meet the needs of those who have the least”in a context in which “poverty reaches FIFTY-TWO POINT NINE PERCENT (52.9%) of the population and indigence reaches EIGHTEEN POINT ONE PERCENT (18.1%)”.

With the publication of the decree, the Government thus places itself above the projects presented by the PRO and the UCR. The first was presented by the deputy Hernan Lombardi and also declares the company “subject to privatization” in the terms and with the effects provided for in Law 23,696. Furthermore, it authorizes the Executive Branch to “establish the legal framework and carry out the procedure to implement the privatization process referred to in Article 1.”

The other initiative was presented by the head of the Civic Coalition block, Juan Manuel Lopez. This text specifies that when privatizing the firm, Law 23,696 and its amendments are contemplated, “and must comply, for such purposes, with the prescriptions that arise from said norm and those established by articles 11 to 14 of Law 27,742”, of Bases and Starting Points for Argentines.

The decree that declared Aerolíneas Argentinas as “subject to privatization”

Days ago, the presidential spokesperson, Manuel Adorni, advanced the Government’s strategy of presenting the decree and argued that the flag line “it drags a chronic deficit as a result of the disastrous efforts carried out by each and every one of the populist governments which causes the need to carry out constant transfers of public resources that put fiscal sustainability at risk.”

Last Wednesday, the Chamber of Deputies debated the privatization of Aerolíneas Argentinas in a plenary session of Transportation and Budget commissions. The Government wants to move forward with a ruling next month for the sale of the company in the midst of the conflict with the aeronautical unionswho carry out forceful measures for salary demands and in rejection of layoffs.