The list of reforms which the Greek government is set to send to Brussels is reportedly missing a number of key elements from SYRIZA’s election campaign proclamations, such as the party’s commitments to the State regaining control of the banks and a series of reforms in employment relations.
According to government sources, the list does not contain any provisions for the suspension of the previous government’s interventions in employment legislation, which included the controversial suspension and collective dismissal measures. The commitment for recruiting 300,000 in the public, private and social economy (costed at 5 billion euros) is also absent from the list.
The government had also promised certain actions to provide work in the private sector for the over 55s and young, by providing subsidies to SMEs for this reason. Other commitments for assisting the chronically unemployed and benefits for self-employment and the establishment of new businesses have also been omitted.
These developments has caused major reactions within SYRIZA, with MEP Manolis Glezos issuing scathing criticism of the government for going back on its promises, while SYRIZA’s economist Kostas Lapavitsas has requested that the party bodies convene to debate the situation, as his does not believe that the party’s proclamations can be implemented under these conditions. Markos Bolaris and the Left Platform are also skeptical of the terms of the new agreement.
At first it was suggested to convene the government council, followed by SYRIZA’s political secretariat and parliamentary group, before the party’s central committee convened over the upcoming weekend. In order to reduce the tension though, it was decided to only convene government-level bodies instead.
