By Penelope Galliou

In the midst of mobilizations of the agricultural world throughout the country, with farmers claiming the vindication of their demands, but also returning from extraordinary Summit in Brusselswherever the agricultural issue occupied an important place in the debates of the European leaders, the Prime Minister today chooses the floor of the Parliament to announce his intentions for additional new measures and the government’s new plan against the agricultural issue.

The stamp of his intentions was already given by the Belgian capital o Kyriakos Mitsotakis, immediately after the conclusion of the work of the Synod. “I will have the opportunity to speak in Parliament, answering a question from the president of the New Left about what is happening in Thessaly and to develop in more detail some of our thoughts on how we intend to further strengthen the primary sector” announced the prime minister, leaving an open window for new support measures.

For days, after all, the message that the government sends to the farmers is clear and it states its intention to satisfy as many of their requests as possible, with an inviolable rule of not disrupting fiscal stability.

Government sources focused on two of the most important issues that concern the farmers and concern their claims. The first concerns his return excise duty on oila measure which the ND government implemented for two consecutive years, in 2022 and 2023, resulting in the return of around €160 million to 290,000 farmers, and is likely to be implemented again in 2024. second measure under consideration concerns ELGA and readjustment of the compensation regime which grants the affected farmers.

As explained by government sources, the disasters in Thessaly highlighted, among other things, the need for the modernization of the ELGA regulation, and its full harmonization with the new data of the era and climate change, so that it fully covers producers from risks that until now were not included in the insurance.

In its new, modern regulation ELGA, it will be foreseen, among other things, the possibility of cooperation with private companies, to cover damage in sections that ELGA does not cover, without however losing its public character. In addition, ELGA’s ability to provide compensation related to adverse weather conditions, such as high temperatures, prolonged heat and extreme rainfall, is expected to be strengthened, with the establishment of an annual subsidy for the Organization from the budget of the Ministry of Finance.

However, apart from the “listening ears of the government”, the demands of the farmers also find a response in public opinion, as the news Pulse poll for SKAI TVaccording to which 68% of the respondents have a positive attitude towards the reasons for the protest of the Greek farmers, and in particular 34% answer “definitely positively” and the other 34% “rather positively”, while only 13% answer negatively, of which 11% “probably negative” and 2% “definitely negative”.