“Amid adverse, unprecedented conditions, we significantly strengthened and supported the disposable income of households and businesses more bravely than any other country in Europe,” said the finance minister.
A series of comparative tables on the state of the Greek economy, between the previous SYRIZA government and the current ND government, was given by Finance Minister Christos Staikouras, in his intervention on the discussion of the 2023 state budget. Taking the floor, after the speech of the SYRIZA MP and former Deputy Prime Minister, Yannis DragasakisMr. Staikouras confirmed the anxieties of Mr. Dragasakis about the upside risks in the future and the high uncertainties we have faced.
As Mr. Staikouras said, SYRIZA handed over the government “as a special case in Europe”. Other countries also entered into memoranda, but none entered into a regime of enhanced supervision. The only country in Europe that entered a regime of enhanced supervision was Greece in the summer of 2018 and exited in the summer of 2022. That is why all the institutions and partners last Monday spoke of a historic moment. If we were not an exception, they would say, (that it was) a historic moment in 2018, Mr. Staikouras said and underlined: “The truth is that since last week we have been absolutely normal as far as the country is concerned.”
Comparing the last two periods of government, Mr. Staikouras he said:
1-You delivered the Greek economy with GDP at 183.3 billion euros, while today it is at 224 billion, increased by 25%.
2-In the period 2014-2018, the average growth in Greece was 0.5% while in Europe it was 1.9. “Nobody would call that a success.” Since then, the number of economic growth in Greece is double and triple the European term, noted the Minister of Finance.
3-You delivered 19.7% unemployment, which today is at 12.7%.
4-For the banks, “let me remind you, because I know the anxiety you have had since 2015, that you had also personally committed to the issue of bad loans that it would end by the end of 2015: You handed over the bad loans at the rate that the received, at 43.6%. Today it is below 10%.”
5-You received deposits at 160 billion and delivered them at 136.9 billion. “I don’t think it’s a success. Today it is 185.5 billion, the highest amount since the beginning of the crisis 12 years ago.”
6-You delivered the public debt at 180.6%, while today it is at 159.3%.
7-The private debt increased during your days by 40 billion euros. Unfortunately, this is not a success, but comparably, it increases, under ND government, by 20 billion.
8-Change in public debt: Record in Greece compared to any other country from 2019 onwards.
9-Investment grade- Upgrades: “No one would say that it is a success, in your days for the country to be downgraded and in the days of the current government, for it to have been upgraded 11 times”.
Concluding, Mr. Staikouras said that this government, amidst unprecedented crisis conditions, fully respected the vote of the citizens, implementing what we had said before the election, in terms of tax policy, by reducing taxes and insurance contributions, mainly in favor of the middle class. “And at the same time, in adverse, unprecedented conditions, we significantly strengthened and supported the disposable income of households and businesses more bravely than any other country in Europe, achieving all these goals at the same time. Achieving these goals is a collective success of society and the state and all wings must recognize this because this is how we recognize the sacrifices of Greek society” said Mr. Staikouras.
Commenting on the Staikoura intervention, Mr. Dragasakis said that he is comparing the public debt, using inflation and accuracy. “It is not serious to say that the public debt has decreased. The ratio of public debt to GDP decreased because the nominal, due to the accuracy, appeared larger.”
As he said, the SYRIZA government received the country’s public debt in 2014 at 319 billion and handed over 331 billion, leaving at the same time a cushion of 36 billion. “The SYRIZA government, with Prime Minister Al. Tsipras, is the only government of the last decades that did not increase the country’s public debt by even one euro. I know this sounds like news, because falsehood has prevailed,” said Mr. Dragasakis.
With regard to bad loans, he said that the SYRIZA government had drafted a proposal to create a special agency for the management of bad loans, a form of bad bank, but unfortunately the lenders, aided by domestic interests, did not allow it and ‘ this is why our policy on bad loans took a completely different course, through which we again tried to save what we could”.
Finally, he asked the finance minister if he knows that the country was bankrupted “by your government and the other governments of the 2000s. If you believe that Greece was not bankrupt, and you share what Mr. Mitsotakis said that the memoranda were brought SYRIZA, we cannot discuss. If you recognize that this country was bankrupt, and the bankruptcy was so deep, that’s why the memorandums lasted longer here, because we had deficits next to it, because the first memorandum was criminal, because huge mistakes were made by the previous governments, then I’m happy, I’m in your availability for discussion. But discussion on the basis of distorted situations is difficult.”
RES-EMP
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