Greek Prime Minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, presented his economic agenda for the next year during his annual speech at the Thessaloniki International Fair.
He described nine challenges for his government. Among these challenges: the convergence of public and private sector wages, employment growth, green transition, and effective response to the demographic and climate crisis stand out.
“I do not carry with me today a bag of frivolous benefits, but only suggestions for useful and effective options,” Mitsotakis said, during a time when eight states, including major economies such as Italy and France, have already been placed under surveillance by the European Commission for overspending. “I personally will not allow this to happen in Greece” he added.
Among 45 measures announced by the Greek PM, are higher pensions for 2,000,000 pensioners as of the beginning of next year and a new increase in the minimum wage as of April.
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Plan to spend 3 billion Euro
The government plans to spend 3 billion Euros on the measures in 2025 alone, which amounts to 1.5 % of the GDP.
The Mediterranean country is still recovering from a 2009-2018 budget crisis that wiped out almost a quarter of its economy and nearly got Greece out of the Eurozone. Many years of austerity measures were put in place which reduced wages and pensions.
However, Greeks had a steady recovery and the average wage has increased over the years. On the other hand, unemployment is still the second highest in the EU with 10%. Purchasing power is also among the lowest in the bloc.
Combating climate change and green transitioning is important for Greece because devastating wildfires and floods had very negative effects on public finances.
