The issue of the coronavirus pandemic was mentioned by the Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis in his introductory speech at the Council of Ministers.
As he said, there is a significant increase in cases, which is primarily an increase in cases among those who are not vaccinated and added that there is a great pressure on the National Health System in Northern Greece.
However, the Prime Minister said that there is the other side of reality: “In the last three days alone, more than 60,000 new appointments for first vaccinations have been made and the flow for the 3rd booster dose is stable, about 30,000 appointments per day.
I remind you that last December, in a measurement that was done, only 33% of our adults said that they would definitely be vaccinated, while 11 months later 73% of Greek adults were vaccinated.
I mention this because in the face of fear and easy criticism there is the other Greece, which responds to the call of reason, responds to the policy of persuasion and denies the deniers of the truth, as well as the deniers of the alliance against a national challenge.
The message, then, to those who bet on artificial divisions remains one: we are vaccinated, we are united, we take our lives back and we move on. »
Referring to the cabinet agenda, he described it as “green”, as it focuses on four reforms related to the environment, the country’s energy orientation towards renewable energy sources:
“First and foremost, the climate law, which the country is acquiring for the first time. The new framework for the production and storage of electricity from clean sources, with an emphasis on offshore wind farms. Third, the transformation of the hydrocarbon management authority. And of course the national plan of circular economy for the four years 2021-2025.
We are talking, therefore, about a multilevel, a coherent program that leads Greece to the new era with goals and timetables. In a development which on the one hand will offer clean and cheap energy but at the same time will offer many, good new jobs and a better quality of life to the citizens.
It is a necessary choice in the midst of the climate crisis, but it is a choice synonymous with the progress of the place and the prosperity of society.
The new framework obviously serves our country’s commitments, which I had the opportunity to reiterate on Monday at the UN summit.
Greece remains a European protagonist in the rapid decontamination of polluting lignite. I remind you that by 2023 at the latest, all the old polluting units of PPC will have been closed and by 2028 at the latest – this date may come earlier – we will be completely independent from the burning of lignite.
At the same time, we are leading the way in investments in renewable energy sources and in electricity, but at the same time – and I want to emphasize this – we are also becoming a hub for the transfer of clean energy to the Mediterranean.
The energy diplomacy that Greece is already launching, such as the recent agreement with Egypt on the electricity interconnection, through which clean electricity will be transferred from the African sun to Greece and from there to Europe, is also moving in this direction. .
But the position of Greece as an energy hub concerns not only the present but also the future. In the discussions we had, for example, with Saudi Arabia, Greece can become a hub for the entry of green hydrogen that will be produced in the Middle East and through Greece will be introduced to the European market.
It thus becomes clear that the global energy environment, apart from being a development challenge, is also a field for upgrading the geostrategic and international position of our country.
The green policy that we will discuss today, however, also concerns everyday life. This will get better because under the climate law we are making some very specific commitments.
For example, from 2023 all new homes to be built will be banned from installing oil burners where there is an adequate gas network.
From 2025 all new taxis in Athens and Thessaloniki, but also 1/3 of the rental vehicles, should be either electric or zero emission vehicles.
And from 2030 the sale of new cars with internal combustion engines will be banned.
I know that these goals are ambitious, but they are necessary and with the plan we have at our disposal they can become realistic. After all, these are initiatives to which all Greeks now respond and first and foremost our young people. This is evidenced, moreover, by the great success of the “Save” program, as well as the rapid transformation of our islands into green, energy-autonomous areas “.
As Mr. Mitsotakis said, on Friday, November 5, he will be in Halki, to inaugurate the GR – eco islands initiative, which he characterized as a model of transition of our small and then large islands to the green season. Which means not just a cleaner environment but also cheaper electricity for everyone, as he said:
“This green policy is also a development challenge of the times. It is no coincidence that today will be completed the Share Capital Increase of PPC, 1.35 billion euros which many important and reliable investors rushed to offer, in an extremely encouraging valuation. With the State still holding control of the company, with the share price today at 9 euros when – I remind you – we received it at 1 euro and the Public Electricity Company on the verge of bankruptcy.
A strong PPC can support consumers in the difficulty we are facing today, absorbing some of the increases in electricity prices, but will also become a protagonist in the green transition in Greece and the Balkans.
Clean energy is therefore becoming a new field of global economic activity. From there, public and private funds will be mobilized, generating wealth and new employment. “And the countries most ready for the green transition will be the winners of the future,” he said.
As he pointed out at the Council of Ministers, the reform of EOPYY for the rationalization in the context of health services markets will be discussed, but also the reform of the National School of Judges with the aim of, as he said, the total rationalization of Justice.
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