By G. Kampourakis
[email protected]
The Tsipras government this week emphasized that submission, to Parliament, of the 2019 draft budget will not be delayed due to its increasingly pressing effort to avoid an already legislated reduction in social security spending, set for implementation in January.
Achieving creditors’ acquiescence to suspend the measure has been elevated into the poll-trailing government’s top priority since the third memorandum bailout ended on Aug. 20, 2018, as yet another reduction in pensioners’ pockets heading into an election bodes ill for the floundering coalition.
Another “headache” for the finance ministry is whether or not to calculate the pending social security reduction the draft budget. The dilemma for the Greek side is that European creditors have clearly stated over the recent period that any decision on Athens’ pressing request will come after the draft budget has been reviewed, along with the Greek side’s economic forecasts for the coming year. As such, without a prior nod to suspend the measure, the Greek finance ministry would have to find an excuse not to calculate the pension cuts.
The latest reports out of the Greek capital citing the pension issue reveal that discussions with creditors are neither advanced nor being held in a positive climate.
The key date is Monday, Oct. 1, when the draft budget for the coming year is set to be tabled in Parliament, and where either the pension cuts will be included or not.
Nevertheless, a government spokesman this week said the pension cuts will be included in the draft budget, quickly adding, however, that this will be irrelevant if creditors subsequently given their “OK” to the measure’s suspension.
At the same time, Finance Minister Euclid Tsakalotos, who unofficially briefed reporters at the ministry this week, emphatically noted that “I’m not interested very much in what the budget draft will list, I am interested in pensions not being cut in the end.
