The attack in the chamber

During a 28 July 2026 debate on a culture ministry bill, New Democracy MP Dimitris Kyriazidis took the floor and launched a personal attack on Zoe Konstantopoulou, leader of the Plefsi Eleftherias party. He accused her of "systematic, continuous slanderous insult" against him and ND MPs, claiming she called them "murderers and paedophiles". Kyriazidis then revisited a months-old incident in which he told Konstantopoulou "go have a child", a remark that led to his expulsion from the ND parliamentary group at the time. On this occasion he insisted the phrase was merely a wish and portrayed himself as a victim, saying he had been turned into an "Iphigenia" for the sake of ratings.

“I expressed a wish to her, and because that night was the censure motion I became the Iphigenia in the sense of easy viewership and listenership.”

The remarks drew immediate condemnation from Culture Minister Lina Mendoni, presiding officer Giorgos Lambroulis and opposition parliamentary spokespersons. SYRIZA MP Elena Akrita rose to her feet and shouted at Kyriazidis.

“Don't say it again! But if it was a wish, why did you apologize afterwards?”

Kyriazidis replied that he had never apologized and would not do so.

Referral to the Ethics Committee

Later that evening, while the plenary session was still underway, Speaker Nikitas Kaklamanis sent the relevant excerpt from the minutes to the Ethics Committee. In his covering letter he stated that the speech had caused tension and "damages the prestige of the parliamentary institution". He asked the committee to examine whether Kyriazidis's behaviour was compatible with the obligations of MPs under the Code of Ethics. The opposition immediately demanded his expulsion from the ND parliamentary group.

“In this session tension was caused due to a speech by a member of the Hellenic Parliament that damages the prestige of the parliamentary institution.”

Konstantopoulou's memorandum

On the morning of 29 July, Konstantopoulou submitted a memorandum to the Ethics Committee demanding that Kyriazidis's case be examined as a priority. She argued that the committee had so far failed to examine her previous complaints despite her having sent relevant documents. She also criticised Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis for, she said, characterising the attack as "oestrus" and calling on ND MPs to treat her with "the understanding she deserves".

“Any refusal to examine as a priority the major ethics issue that has arisen and concerns an MP of the ND parliamentary group amounts to a complete circumvention of the fundamental functions of the Committee.”

She added that all opposition parties had condemned Kyriazidis's repeated attack while New Democracy had not issued a corresponding condemnation.

A split within New Democracy

The ruling party's response was not uniform. Deputy Culture Minister Iason Fotilas and ND parliamentary spokesperson Giorgos Amyras issued unequivocal condemnations. Fotilas stressed that there was no room for qualifications.

“There is no room for 'but', no 'however', no semicolon, only full stop and dash!”

Amyras said the party condemned sexist behaviour and abusive speech and could not tolerate such language against anyone. However, ND parliamentary spokesperson Dimitris Kairidis took a different line. While acknowledging that abusive behaviour should be condemned, he argued that the accused should not be allowed to appear as the accuser and accused Konstantopoulou of selectively endorsing violence. He also criticised the opposition for hypocrisy and toxic speech.

“Whoever gives the accused the right to pretend and appear as the accuser does no service to Parliament and the country.”

Opposition demands expulsion

Opposition parties united in demanding Kyriazidis's removal from the ND group. Plefsi Eleftherias parliamentary spokesperson Alexandros Kazamias called him an "unrepentant sexist", a "thug", a "coward" and "vulgar". The incident has deepened the political tension in the chamber and placed the Ethics Committee under pressure to act swiftly.