Government on “high alert” as troika is set to return to Athens

The coalition government is on “high alert” in preparation for the troika’s imminent return to Athens, where the latest review and negotiations are set to begin. Prior to the troika’s arrival though, the Prime Minister Antonis Samaras and Government Vice President Evangelos Venizelos will be meeting with the Minister of Finances Gikas Hardouvelis and other critical government officers.

Ahead of the meetings in Athens, Brussels and the IMF have posed a number of critical issues that remain unresolved, such as the deregulation of collective dismissals and a series of work and insurance-related matters. As recent polls show the coalition parties lagging behind the opposition, the government intends to draw “red lines” on these critical matters, which senior government officials have dubbed a “matter of life or death”.

Nevertheless, the PM and VP appear confident that the latest troika review will be complete by the end of October, when the next EU Summit is scheduled to take place and at which point there will be a clear picture regarding the upcoming stress tests that the banks will undertake. Senior government officials note that the duration of the review will largely depend on the degree of implementation of the outstanding prior actions.

Beyond the troika review though, the government will also focus on the domestic front and is expected to submit its budget draft in Parliament on Monday, the 6^th of October. The coalition leaders are preparing to introduce a number of relief measures and tax cuts intended to placate public opinion. Amongst the proposed measures, some of which the PM recently presented at the International Fair in Thessaloniki, are increasing the number of installments for outstanding taxes, reducing taxable real estate values in 2015.