Greece Will Not Return to Belt-Tightening Policy

  16 April 2015    Read: 1077
Greece Will Not Return to Belt-Tightening Policy
According to a government source, currently media pressure against Greece authorities is building up to force them to take measures which would lead to a decline in the economy. The government will not cross "the red line" set by voters at the January 25 election, the source said.
The new Greek government, which includes Coalition of the Radical Left and the right-wing anti-austerity party, the Independent Greeks (ANEL), said they do not plan to return to the era of memorandums and austerity measures, a government representative told journalists.

"Currently media pressure against the government is building up to force it to take measures which would lead to a decline in the economy, such as reduce of wages and pensions, mass layoffs etc. The government will not cross `the red line` set by voters at the January 25 election," he said.

Greek authorities are in talks with creditors over the bailout program under which the country would receive an additional 7.2 billion euros. When the issue is settled, the government plans to start negotiations on debt restructuring. The creditors demanded from the Greek authorities to lay out a detailed reform program which would allow averting the budget deficit.

According to the source, despite a new reform program presented by the new cabinet, many media publications have said the government will violate its obligations.

"The problem of the talks is not that Greece has not presented its reform plan, detailed proposals or a schedule. We have proposals. They know them, but continue to publish disinformation," the representative said.

"Some ultraconservative forces in Greece and abroad refuse to accept reality. The memorandum has died, and the severe austerity policy will not come back to Greece. These measures were taken, and they failed. They resulted in the tragic situation in which most of Greeks are now living," he stated.

According to the representative, these political forces should realize that austerity policies are a dead-end road.

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