26.2.13
The EU-ECB-IMF troika began its evaluation of the Greek economy on Monday, starting with the budget at the general accounting office, in order to get a clear idea of the efforts to reduce expenses and the repayment process of outstanding public debt.
The greatest problem appears to be in collecting indirect taxes, such as the VAT and special consumption taxes. The Minister of Finances G. Stournaras will meet the troika representatives Morse, Masuch and Tomsen on Sunday, before heading to the Eurogroup in Brussels. Mr. Stournaras is expected to focus on the general accounting office’s divs and to suggest a reduction of VAT from 23% to 19%. It is possible that the Prime Minister will also meet the troika heads.
The government intends to complete the meetings with troika representatives by Sunday, with the technical teams completing the details without having to arrange a further meeting for the evaluation. The evaluation related to the 2.8 billion euro March installment and the first trimester of 2013 EU/IMF loan installment worth 6 billion euros.
Both sides want to tone down the drama (the last evaluation lasted five months), however essential issues, such as proposed lay offs of civil servants, remain unsolved. At present the troika is evaluating mobility based on the plans of each ministry.
The troika’s technical teams visited ELSTAT on Monday to begin their estimations on basic indexes such as recession and unemployment. Especially in the case of unemployment, the memorandum predictions in December have failed, with the current rate at 27%, compared to 22.8% predicted.
The technical teams will also be examining the progress of privatizations. On Monday they met and cooperated with the head of TAIPED and executives from the Ministry of Growth. The government hopes to generate 2.5 billion euros by the end of the year, with 2 billion expected to come from the privatization of DEPA-DESFA and OPAP.
