Romanian PM Calin Popescu Tariceanu is expected to present a new government formula in Parliament today - without a major member of the governing coalition for the past two years, the Democratic Party (PD).

The parliamentary groups of remaining two governing parties, the Liberals (PNL) and the Hungarian Democrats (UDMR), along with the main opposition party, the Social Democrats (PSD), cover 255 of the total 469 parliamentary seats, enough to pass the new government.

But the PSD support is vital for the new government. A PD leader, Radu Berceanu, said last week that his group would not be present for the vote on the new government. And the other parliamentary groups - the far-right Greater Romania Party (PRM), the Conservatives (PC) and the Liberal Democrats (PLD) said they would not support the government.

PSD spokesman Cristian Diaconescu suggested last weekend that his party would support the new government.

PRM vice-president Lucian Bolcas told HotNews.ro that his party would oppose “an act of treason” consisting in an alliance with the Hungarian Democrats, a reason shared by the Conservatives - who until late last year were members of the government along PNL, PD and UDMR.

And PLD condemned Tariceanu for “betraying the values of the D.A. Alliance [of Democrats and Liberals] and promises made to votes by excluding its PD partners from the government and associated obscurely with the PSD”.

PLD is formed by many former prominent members of the PNL ast who’ve been disgraced over their opposition to Tariceanu. The new political group elected its leaders in a congress last weekend. Its new president is Theodor Stolojan, a former PNL president, former presidential aide and close ally of President Traian Basescu, Tariceanu’s main political rival.