Better to save than sink

"If we let the shipyards go bankrupt and withdraw from the rescue measures we have proposed, zł.4.6 billion is the cost we would have to pay," Grad told the Sejm.

Opposition politician Joachim Brudziński of Law and Justice argued that the current government is agreeing to liquidate an important branch of Polish industry, while other foreign governments are instead considering the nationalization of their shipyards.

Last month the EC rejected a restructuring plan for Poland's shipyards and ordered the Polish government to sell the shipyards by June 6 of next year. The government is now proposing compensation packages of zł.20,000-60,000 for shipyard workers who decide to leave their jobs.