The government in Athens is expected to send Brussels its list of reforms, which will then be evaluated at the scheduled Euroworking Group, which Christine Lagarde, Pierre Moscovici and Mario Draghi will also attend. Should the list of reforms be approved, then a Eurogroup teleconference will later approve Greece’s request for an extension.
All sources suggest that the lsit will include commitments to tackle tax evasion and corruption, reforms in the public sector and a series of reforms targeting the humanitarian crisis. According to Mega Channel, the list will include changes from the OECD toolkit, commitments for the further independence of the General Secretariat of Public Revenue and references to promoting privatizations.
An unnamed government official told the Financial Times that the reforms are mostly structural, while other sources indicate that the measures have not been costed. The EU, ECB and IMF will likely request that certain reforms be compliant with the overall direction of the program ending on the 28th of February.
Furthermore, critical aspects of the government’s proclamations, such as interventions in employment relations, increasing the minimum wage, rehiring dismissed civil servants and others, will not be included in the list, as they are considered matters of domestic policy. Amongst the structural reforms which the government proposes are the introduction of a fair taxation system, combating tax evasion and corruption, tackling smuggling (particularly in fuel and tobacco products) and reforming the public sector and reducing bureaucracy.
The government council is scheduled to convene at 11am on Tuesday.
