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GREECE CONCLUDED 12 years of European Union fiscal surveillance today which was imposed in return for bailouts after a crushing debt crisis.
In November 2009, Athens revealed a sharp rise in its public deficit that eventually led to a financial crisis across the Eurozone and wreaked havoc on Greek finances for a decade.
In exchange for bailout cash of €289 billion and to stop Greece from crashing out of the Eurozone, a “troika”, made up of the International Monetary Fund, EU and the European Central Bank, demanded across-the-board reforms from Athens.
These included deep state spending and salary cuts, tax hikes, privatisations and other sweeping reforms aimed at righting public finances.
The economy contracted by more than a quarter, unemployment spiked to almost 28% and skilled professionals emigrated in droves.
“A cycle of 12 years which brought pain to citizens, led to economic stagnation and divided society,” has ended, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said.
“A new horizon filled with growth, unity and prosperity emerges for all,” he said. “The Greece of today is a different Greece.
“We have recorded strong growth and a significant slide in unemployment of 3% since last year and 5% since 2019,” he added.
Ending the oversight will strengthen Greece’s international market position by increasing its attractiveness to investors.
Athens will also now have greater control over its domestic economic policy.
“The end of enhanced surveillance for Greece also marks the symbolic conclusion of the most challenging period the euro area has experienced,” Paolo Gentiloni, the European Commissioner for Economy, said in a statement.
“The sovereign debt crisis that defined the first years of the previous decade was a steep learning curve for our Union.
“Our strong collective response to the pandemic indicated that Europe had learned the lessons of that crisis. We must show the same solidarity and unity as we navigate the troubled waters our economies are now entering.”
Greece – like other bailed-out EU members Spain, Portugal, Cyprus as well as Ireland – will still be monitored by its creditors while paying back its debts.
In Greece’s case, that will take another two generations, with the last loans due for repayment in 2070.
According to European Commission projections, the Greek economy will grow by 4% this year, much higher than the Eurozone average of 2.6%.
However, Greece’s unemployment rate is one of the highest in the monetary union, its minimum wage one of the lowest and the country’s debt is 180% of gross domestic product.
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Let it go….
@HearMeNow33: Are you mad? This will be wall to wall, for a few weeks.
@Tommy Berry: True. Can’t let a chance of some shinner bashing pass them by.
@Seán Óg: says the shinnerbot
@Denis Logan: How predictable of you.
When is the Gardaí report on Charlie Flanagan potential Covid-19 breaches at Colm Horkan funeral
@tirnanog1979: no comparison and you know it
@Jane: Both funerals broke the regulations Jane and you know it.
@tirnanog1979: that would be Detective Garda Colm Horkan.
@Seán Óg: SF could have sent representatives to Mr Storeys funeral as happened with Garda Horkans funeral and I don’t think anyone could have complained. Instead SF attended the funeral en masse, traveling from all over the country to do so and gathered in a graveyard to give a graveside oration where no burial was taking place.
@Jane: Nonsense, they were as bad as each other
@Jane: Both funerals had large crowds and poor social distancing. If you admonish SF for the Storey funeral then surely you must do the same for Garda Horkan’s funeral. Your disliking of SF seems to be clouding your judgement Jane.
@Seán Óg: but only one was attending in very large numbers by political party reps from all over the country. That’s the difference.
Why is it even when SF are obviously wrong no criticism is allowed?
Why do ye want to replace a crowd that dodge questions with another crowd that dodge questions?
@Jane: Critism is allowed Jane, but the obvious point you insist on ignoring, is that critism is selective and hypocritical. As was pointed out, you cant criticise one and not the other – but in your case, you did just that.
To me, both were wrong. It would seem, that to you, there is only political captital to be made from criticising one.
@tirnanog1979: It ill behooves Shinners to comment on any Garda’s funeral —–They were responsible for quite a few in their time and indeed have been known to give rapturous acclaim to certain Garda’s murderers.
@Angela McCarthy: and you are ignoring the involvement of a political party in only one of the funerals. A political party that was involved in the making of the rules for everyone else in that jurisdiction.
@Jane: A political party? dont you mean political parties, as more than one seems to be set on debating it. but not the other.
@Angela McCarthy: not sure what you mean by that Angela. Only one party is in bother over it because only one party attended en masse. Bringing a crowd to the graveyard unnecessarily was just ridiculous.
Everyone understands that Bobby Storey was an important figure in SF and as such no one would have batted an eyelid if some of the senior politicians in SF had attended as was done with Garda Horkans funeral.
@Jane: Where did I say no criticism is allowed? People attending both funerals broke government guidelines. So don’t cherry pick your outrage Jane. Call a spade a spade.
@Seán Óg: tell you what Sean you just continue to ignore what are the obvious differences between them as I’ve pointed out above. And continue to be outraged at all and any criticism leveled at SF.
@Jane: I have criticised SF over the attendance of Bobby’s funeral. Because it was wrong to stage a funeral with those numbers in attendance. But you ignore the fact that large numbers attended the Garda’s funeral, including some politicians. Same rules for everyone Jane.
One rule for that crowd, Sur they are the “law” 8 cremations the same day and no one allowed .
@Ger Murray: who’s that crowd ?.
@Airwave81: The uniformed woman and men that lined the streets
Clear the decks, Nolan show can’t wait to ramp up the whole funeral again, rest in peace Big Bobby, a giant among men.
now could they start investigating collusion with he uvf
The usual crowd talking about people in uniforms blah, blah, blah. What I saw were people in ordinary clothes coming out to see a true republican being laid yo rest, with a quarter of a million watching online which Sinn Féin Féin set up. The PSNI have already stated that there were no problems with it. Establishmemt supporters again trying to take away from their parties failure. No bank bailout? Ha ha
Just ticking a box… Nothing will happen
have your say