“I immediately agreed with the conduct of today’s debate as the question of accuracy is indeed the first problem that concerns all Greek households today. The elephant in the room,” stated Kyriakos Mitsotakis in the Parliament, in the Pre-Day Order Debate at the initiative of the President of the SYRIZA-PS Parliamentary Group Sokratis Famellou, “for dealing with the accuracy and taxation of surplus profits which are accumulated by oligopolies at the expense of the Greek economy and society”.

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He noted that today’s debate might provide an opportunity for confrontation based on facts and figures so that citizens can learn the truth, understand the specifics, be informed about the dykes against inflation and the positions of all parties.

The prime minister pointed out that initially the government intercept electricity prices and these have returned to pre-crisis levels and he said that the problem persists especially in food inflation.

“No one today denies that on the one hand the high prices in supermarkets and on the other hand high rents eat away at income,” he continued.

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Mr. Mitsotakis emphasized that the only radical and permanent answer to the price increases are the permanent increases in wages, pensions and benefits to support the most vulnerable.

“I’m not here to embellish any situation,” he added and showed a table with the course of inflation over the past three years showing that in 2022 it was higher than the European average, followed by a period when it was significantly lower and then a 3rd phase which is slightly higher than the European average.

Then he showed a table with the course of food inflation where we see an inverse course in relation to general inflation. He said there was a time at the beginning of the crisis when food inflation was higher than the European average, then lower and now higher again.

“I will not refer to the 5-year figures where Greece had a lower average than the Eurozone. I deliberately went to the 3-year course because the 5-year course also includes the pandemic period. The problem of accuracy has national specificities, but it is also faced by the other members of the eurozone. I will explain why it is more painful in our country and that is why in a letter to the president of the European Commission I asked for EU intervention because the giants of trade cannot and should not set geographical restrictions on retail supply and keep prices high in countries with high market shares. It is not possible for the same product to be available at such different prices. It is a profit-making tactic and requires a European response”, he underlined.

Mr. Mitsotakis added that yesterday the responsible vice president for competition issues imposed a mammoth fine on an American company for such practices.

“It is not something that only Greece is asking for, but at least seven other countries”, he noted and said that “now the problem has emerged in all its intensity and that Europe itself was surprised by the unprecedented increase in prices”.

“We are also reacting now because we believe that this inflation of greed must be dealt with radically and we have European elections and it must be recorded as a European priority,” he added. “A Greek proposal is at the center of Brussels’ concerns”, he continued and asked if there was any party that had previously proposed something similar.

“What I hear from the opposition is a harsh criticism but I also hear a lot of priceless proposals,” he added.

Kyriakos Mitsotakis in his speech to the parliament mentioned in five myths to be precise, firstly that Greece is the champion. “I proved to you that it is not a champion and just one look at the map is enough to see that it is a phenomenon that all economies face and that led central banks to raise interest rates after the pandemic,” he noted.

The prime minister said that “talking about Mitsotakis accuracy” is indulgently misleading and “reality itself belies you.”

Regarding food inflation, he said that it has the peculiarity that the percentage of olive oil it is very high in Greece. “Without the participation of olive oil, food inflation would be at 2.8% and it is a stock market product. What you cannot dispute is that our policy of wage and pension increases is consistently implemented,” he underlined, referring to the increases in the minimum wage and the average wage. “All this, together with a record investment and 450,000 new jobs created by this government, adds up to an embankment,” he said.

The Prime Minister said that the second myth is that we have Swedish prices and Bulgarian salaries. “Neither Sweden nor Bulgaria went bankrupt like Greece. This is the story of the Greek economy, which moved roughly at the European average and went through a decade of unprecedented crisis. Let me remind you that between 2015 and 2019, when it was raining money in Europe, some people held an umbrella and because of the third memorandum brought Greece to the lowest growth rate in the Eurozone. And because the new leader of SYRIZA wants to resurrect the political alliance with Mr. Varoufakis and Ms. Konstantopoulou let us remind him who were the real culprits of this great disaster. It is not enough to see only where we are today, but also where we started”, he emphasized.

Kyriakos Mitsotakis also mentioned that the 2027 we will find out if the government followed through on its commitment for a minimum wage of 950 euros and medium at 1500 euros.

“Pensions huh? 4000 euros to everyone. 13th 14th salary… Let’s realize that we all struggle with the same problems and can only insist on realistic solutions. You say that the government’s measures are ineffective. But the embankments of the State were coordinated and had a specific footprint”, added the Prime Minister.

“Someone inform your leader that we have taxed the super profits of the energy companies,” he said addressing the SYRIZA MPs and said that today electricity prices fell to pre-crisis levels. “We rationalized the prices of baby milk and banned offers on overpriced products,” he continued, detailing other measures implemented by the government.

Mr. Mitsotakis was mentioned and about reduced VAT as an antidote to accuracy. “This measure has been tested in other countries such as Spain. It did not work. See the prices in Spain and compare with Greece. How much does the measure cost? 4 billion in the first year and 2.4 billion for each subsequent year. All the measures you have announced cost 45.8 billion over the 4 years. This law proposal must be costed by the General Accounting Office. Here is the costing. 45 billion per four years are what you are asking. You have learned nothing from your mistakes. What you suggest involves only one word. Bankruptcy and this time bankruptcy with no return. The crime must become a lesson and the political forces have a duty not to resort to easy slogans that caress ears. When you were in the same position in 2018 what was your captain saying? Shall I remind you? That reductions in VAT will never be passed on to consumers and are ineffective. Tsipras – SYRIZA without a chair and Tsipras – SYRIZA with a chair,” he said, pointing to the chairs of the official opposition.

The prime minister noted that if SYRIZA disputes this costing, it should take it to the Parliament’s budget office. “You can’t feed rabbits with parsley without an answer. You are mocking the Greek people. I also heard your leader is bringing fresh air but I’m afraid it’s stale air,” he added.

Mr. Mitsotakis also referred to the position of the opposition that the government backs the interests. “Then who cut 50 taxes and improved wages and pensions? Who allocates 7 billion for social benefits this year alone, having taxed and collected hundreds of millions. from electricity producers? Who increased the tax-free for families with children and the maternity benefit? Who facilitates young people? Who has offered a first home with the “My Home” program? We could talk for a long time about the support provided by the government”, he wondered, among other things.

“It is an oxymoron for the center-right faction to fight against giants and for you to criticize us because we are dealing with multinationals,” he said.

“You tell us to reduce the VAT for a while. And after; Finally get out of your fantasy world and lie about comparing prices too. I heard your leader talking about feta,” he continued and mentioned specific prices of feta compared to other countries.

“Tell your boss the next time he’s out shopping to at least compare similar products. Not organic oil with regular and in different packaging. He may be a successful businessman, but he is no match for an oil merchant,” he added.

The prime minister also said that today’s debate is the last before the European elections. “The stakes of the new European five-year plan are also linked to our own national priorities”, he underlined and spoke in detail about the issues concerning Greece, such as, among others, the common demand for a unified European defense policy.

“It strikes me that while we have European elections in two weeks, the opposition parties and primarily the official opposition have not spoken about the Europe of the next day. You choose to turn the European elections into a referendum against the government. Whether it will succeed or not we will see. The fact that the future of Europe is absent from your political speech does not make you a reliable force to claim what the Greeks deserve. Our faction put Greece in Europe when the opposition forces coordinated at the time called EEC and NATO the same union. The weight of the June 9 vote will be heavy. The citizens know how important stability is in the place so that it remains on the path of development, away from experimentation, away from undeniable so-called protest messages. Our people judge and distinguish. All of us know the difficulties, the anxiety of the household”, stressed Mr. Mitsotakis.

“If I answered you today. They will answer you in two weeks”, the prime minister added, closing his introduction.