With a clear message that Greece is no longer the country of bankruptcy, but a lighthouse of stability, the Minister of Finance appeared Kyriakos Pierrakakis In an interview today (25.6.2025) to SKAI, stressing that the government is ready to intervene if needed due to the crisis in Middle East.
Kyriakos Pierrakakis referred to international developments and impacts from the Middle East war, noting that although the government is closely monitoring the situation, there is currently no indication that justifies immediate intervention in fuel prices.
He recalled that the price of oil remains at $ 68 a barrel – clearly lower than the $ 115 recorded at the start of the war in Ukraine.
“We are not Greece in 2015,” the minister underlined, noting that the country has surpluses, growth and greater fiscal resilience. Despite the challenges, “we can go even better,” he added.
Referring to the design for this year’s Thessaloniki International Exhibition, Kyriakos Pierrakakis made it clear that The TIF package will normally apply on the basis of the new logic of European ‘expenditure rule’ As the new budgetary rules stipulate that even in difficult years, support for society and the economy continues at the same height.
In addition, he stressed that the announcements will have a clear target: Reduce weights for middle class and development push for the country. Answering the question of whether there will be a “brave return” to the citizens, the minister reminded that in the spring there was already a package of 1.1 billion euros. We have reduced 70 taxes. What other government has done this when Greece was on the brink of bankruptcy ten years ago, he said.
Categorically ruled out the possibility of reinstating 13th and 14th salary to public. He explained that there is no room for 7 – 8 billion additional costs but if there was, it would have to be used for more social groups and with developmental logic, he said, adding that civil servants have already been reinforced and the support policy should be expanded.
For the crisis in housing, The minister acknowledged that the main problem is the lack of available houses. Missing houses from the market, acknowledged and reminded that there was already a refund program of the year for 80% of tenants. The next intervention is to establish the electronic payment of the rent as a large part of the underlying economy is hiding there, and the financial staff is processing measures that will catch this blind spot.
Speaking For the banking systemKyriakos Pierrakakis stressed that Greek banks are now stronger and better capitalized, something that the citizen should start to feel.
About the problem of loans in Swiss franche said that the government is in cooperation with the Bank of Greece and the commercial banks to find a fair solution. The perimeter of the feasible solution is specific, but the targeting is to relieve borrowers, he stressed, explaining that the core of the intervention would be the out -of -court mechanism.
The minister particularly stood in the digital tool of the “clientele”, which aims to further reduce VAT vacuum, while saying that we are moving towards the abolition of imputed income. The digital clientele is already piloted in 4,000 workshops and 1,100 car rental companies, with 185,000 transactions recorded in two months.
Finally, Mr. Pierrakakis referred to OPEKEPE’s entry into AADE for controlling agricultural subsidies. The tax administration is now gaining full access to the Agency’s data and, he said, “there will be a phase of searching and refunding money where there are irregularities.”