Argentina’s Senate has rejected President Javier Milei’s sweeping emergency decree to deregulate the economy, in a major blow to the libertarian leader and his attempt to deliver reforms for the crisis-stricken country.
Senators voted 42 to 25 to reject the decree, with four abstentions. Issued in December it modifies or eliminates more than 300 regulations affecting the housing rental market, food retailers, air travel, land ownership, and more.
Milei, a political outsider elected in November, is struggling to overcome a hostile Congress to enact his radical change agenda. His La Libertad Avanza coalition (LLA) controls less than 10 per cent of Senate seats and was unable to win over centrist opposition legislators, most of whom on Thursday voted with the left-leaning Peronist opposition movement, which holds 45 per cent of Senate seats.