At the very end, Greeks got neither a “national unity” government as Antonis Samaras had proposed, neither a “national co-responsibility” government as Evangelos Venizelos wanted. After four days of negotiations between Nea Dimocratia, PASOK and Democratic Left, Greeks got a “national responsibility” government.
In a proclamation published together with the names of the cabinet members,
the coalition government partners set as government goals “to deal with the crisis, to open the way of development and to revise terms of the loan agreement (MoU) without putting in danger the European path of the country or remaining in the euro.”
Samaras government wants “to eliminate the state, to keep debt under control and to implement structural reforms necessary for the country” as the loan agreement dictates but at the same time it wants “to create conditions that will definitely take the country out of the crisis and out of dependence from future loan agreements.”
Here are the ministers and some alternate ministers – for full list in Greek check here.
Prime Minister Antonis Samaras
Finance Minister: Vasssilis Rapanos. Alternate: Christos Staikouras (for state expenditure), Giwrgos Mavraganis (for state revenues).
Foreign Minister: Dimitris Avramopoulos (ex-career diplomat, ex Athens mayor, ex Health Minister ND). Alternate: Dimitris Kourkoulas (diplomat, PASOK I think)
Defense Minister: Panos Panagiotopoulos (ex journalist, ND)
Interior Minister: Evripidis Stylianidis (ND)
Tourism Minister: Olga Kefalogianni (ND)
Health Minister: Andreas Lykourentzos (ND) – 3 alternate among them one woman
Maritime: Kostas Mousouroulis Alternate: Nikos Vernikos (shipowner, PASOK)
Citizens’ Protection: Nikos Dendias (ND)
Justice: Antonis Rupakiotis (proposal of DemLeft )
Development and Infrastructure: Kostis Chadzithakis (ND, also ex minister)
Administration Reform: Antonis Manitakis (proposal of DemLeft)
Education & Culture: Konstantinos Arvanitopoulos (?)
Agricultural Development: Athanasios Tsaftaris (PASOK)
Labour: Panagiotis Vourtsis
Environment: Evangelos Livieratos (PASOK)
Macedonia-Thrace: Theodoros Karaoglou
Epikrateias (without portofolio) : Dimitris Stamatis
Government Spokesman: Simos Kedikoglou
Vaggelis Meimarakis (ND) will be proposed as Parliament Speaker – He get elected per voting.
The government will be sworn-in at 7 pm, an hour later the first cabinet meeting will be held. Rapanos, Kourkoulas and Mavragannis will be sworn-in tomorrow, Friday.
Boys Among Themselves…
The government has 40 members, Antonis Samaras included.
In a conservative male-dominating government there was place only for two women (Tourism Minister, deputy Health Minister).
Only 24 ministers, alternate and deputy ministers are members of the Parliament, 15 are not. Only 11 from the new ministers and deputy ministers have served in a ministerial post before.
Government Partners
Nea Dimocratia fully controls the cabinet with 33 members (either party members or ND choice). TI fully controls 10 ministries without a member from another party.
PASOK chose three ministers, including Vassilis Rapanos.
DEMLEFT chose two ministers and one deputy minister.
Three ministries are led by ND & PASOK, and three others by ND & DEMLEFT
Three New Ministries
There are three new ministries Tourism, Maritime and Macedonia-Thrace that deals with issues of Northern Greece.
Culture and Education were merged.
During the last days, Greek media had cited ND sources, claiming the new government would be composed of 16 ministers and 20 alternate/deputy ministers.
Samaras excluded we have to come up for the costs of 39 people including their staff.
No problem, if this government would take us out of the crisis.
“Samaras excluded we have to come up for the costs of 39 people including their staff”
I believe they, like any other politician anywhere in the world, should only get paid upon full delivery of thier promises. that’s how it works in the real world, come up wiht the good, I’ll give you the readies…
paid upon delivery? then Greeks woulc be rich.
But they are, they’re just poor mouthing themselves. They never paid tax, didn’t you know? Every newspaper in the world tells their audience, it’s even on tv, so it must be true…
Most of them were paid/overpaid decades ago, so paying them nothing now would still mean paying them too much.
What’s the bet they would leave as soon as they found out there was nothing to be scammed anymore?
For all we know, they have had to be blackmailed over their past crimes in order for them to accept these posts! Since they will have little chance to do anything at all, they are mere puppets. (Well, ok, gargoyles then: Pinocchio was far more charming)
Ah, wonderful. Total break with the past. No bowing to vested interests. No conflicts of interest… That’s why we put a shipowner on the Maritime Ministery. That’s very good. This guy has to control and regulate himself. Nice short lines. No waist at all…
*frantic looking for that ‘middle finger’icon*
Isn’t the Minister not the ND MP from Chios? I rest my case… same old sh**
huh?
Kostas Mousouroulis is indeed from Chios. Next to Chios, and part of his constituency, is Oinousses. And isn’t this the home of a fair number of Greek shipping families?
And isn’t one of the things that were under scrutiny the special tax position of the Greek shipping firms? Guess they won’t be hit by any austerity soon…
yes, syriza threatened them with taxation, but now just in opposition .
But if there was any urge to do something about the ‘special position’ of the shipowners, their families and all their businesses then it won’t come during this government, is my bet.
I thought it would be nice to look if there are more of these kind of conflicts of interest. But I can’t find such obvious ones at the moment.
I have made a short list of info about ministers I could find:
very well! see you found back your interest.
BTW, Vernikos owns touristic ships
When it floats, it’s a boat…
And once hooked by Greece always a fish… 😛
would it be possible to give a listing with the illustrious past political “achievements” and connections all these “trustworthy, responsible” people have?
Just so that everybody can see in B&W what exactly we have in terms of change that “with the help of God” will get Greece out of the mess it’s in. Looks like we’re going to have to rely a lot on God…
AntoniX made a nice listing.
At the end this will be a KTG co-operative blog
I want to be optimistic. I hope that something is going to change. So I suggest we wait and see what will come out of this new government. Also, I have to say that I’m relieved that right now we’re not talking about a euro-exit or even worse, a default. The only euro exit we are talking about is probably going to happen tomorrow 😛
true. Germany’s euro exit 🙂
ha ha…. Germany’s euro exit? That’s the definition of optimism! Let’s be honest : they have a better team! 😛
better than?
better than the greek team!
who says so? Loew didn’t
Whoever it is that is put into any ministry now they will have to answer to the troika. This way the lamogia cannot get away with what they have been doing the last 30 years. This is why I am for the MoU, because without an external audit there is NOBODY that will stay honest, especially in a system that has been set up to cover up fraud. A system that only the MoU can dismantle.
the next game for the Euro Cup will be Troika vs Troika (IMF/EU/ECB vs ND/PASOK/DEMLEFT)
Didn’t I read somewhere that the whole idea behind Veni’s Greek Negotiating Team was to save the Troika the bother of coming to Athens for those audits. Instead, Veni & Co would go to Brussels and brief them there…
I think it is not possible, because the Troika goes checking door to door
Let us now see what this government will do.
Yes that is right no more blah blah. “Action is louder than words.”
Like the saying says, “Money talks, bullshit walks.”
So what will they do and soon.
Because if they do not tread carefully they will be chased and answer to the people.
39 Ministers, i guess they can live off just 5,000.00 Euro per month plus travelling expenses and staying in 3 or 4 star hotels when on foreign assignments and no Lobster dinners or Champagne Seminars on the expense of the Greek people.
But i would stress, it will benefit both the people and themselves “the ministers” if they for a month wore the shoes of the worker and spent one month living this life of a worker who is married with one or two children, earns 600.00 Euro per month and has to pay rent and housing costs and cloth and feed the family and educate the children.
Only then will they understand of how they can make the country better for all.
Many Ministers, Directors and Managers, forget that the worker / mitarbeiter. Is the backbone of the nation, for it is with them that a nation exists, it is them that keep the factories, hotels, restaurants, ships and other facilities working.
What does this mean the workers should be the ones that should be rewarded not the Ministers, Directors or Managers. Because without the workers they will not make their targets and get their pay rises and bonuses.
Prove what you are worth.
Posos Foros Mazevete apo to FPA me 1 apo ta parakato proionta tin evdomada se ena hrono mono apo 5,000,000 atoma.
Product Price Sales Tax No of units No of weeks Amount of Tax
Tax Amount Sold in Year collected
Gala 1,50 23% 0,345 5,000,000 52 89,700,000
Psomi 1,30 23% 0,299 5,000,000 52 77,740,000
Avga 1,20 23% 0,276 5,000,000 52 71,760,000
Retsina 1,50 23% 0,345 5,000,000 52 89,700,000
Tsigara 5,00 23% 1,15 5,000,000 52 299,000,000
Nero 0,50 23% 0,115 5,000,000 52 29,000,000
Patates 0,80 23% 0,184 5,000,000 52 47,840,000
Agouri 0,30 23% 0,069 5,000,000 52 17,940,000
Kafes 1,50 23% 0,345 5,000,000 52 89,700,000
Ntomates1,50 23% 0,345 5,000,000 52 89,700,000
Zampon 1,00 23% 0,23 5,000,000 52 59,800,000
Feta200g2,00 23% 0,46 5,000,000 52 119,600,000
Marouli 0,50 23% 0,115 5,000,000 52 29,000,000
Sokolata1,00 23% 0,23 5,000,000 52 59,800,000
Anapsiktiko1,00 23% 0,23 5,000,000 52 59,800,000
Himos 1,50 23% 0,345 5,000,000 52 89,700,000
Venzini1L1,80 23% 0,745 5,000,000 52 107,640,000
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22,10 Euro per person per week for one year
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Thats about 1,5 billion Euro per year 1,429,220,000 Euro per year
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If 1,429,220,000 Euros is collected per year on just the items i have listed and calculated above imagine how much money the government collects from the millions of products sold every day, every week, every month, every year.
And they say the treasury is empty, who are they trying to fool this goes not only for Greece but also Germany and every country around the world.
The politicians are stealing from the people. Please take note.
above post in English: Listing how much money is being collected through the V.A.T. in a year via 5 million people for products like Milk, Bread, Eggs, Water, Potatoes etc.
The treasury is empty because all of those taxes are being paid to banks, including high interest to German banks on the new loans made to Greece.
If it had not been for all the bonds issued (money borrowed) by ND when it was last in government, there would be just enough money for Greece to survive. As I keep explaining to people, Greece is screwed because it was not allowed to default on its impossiblu high debt to German and French banks (amongst others). And the political party that did was ND, which has now been put back in power by the Germans’ threats and interference with the Greek democratic process.
So, logical conclusion? Germany supports corruption because it is in Germany’s interests.
if we think of SIEMENS and Ferrostaal …yes, Germany supports corruption in order to secure GR-state contracts. In this sense, Greek taxpayers create jobs in Germany.
The above figures are based on buying only 1 of every item from the above list.
But one does not just buy 1 item from the above list. One will buy 3 or 4 cartons of 1 liter of milk per week. One will not just tank on 1 liter of Venzini (Petrol) for their car but 20 to 50 liters per week.
One does not just buy 1 packet of cigarettes per week, in Greece the average smoker buys 2 to 3 packets per day. And one does not drink just 1 Retsina, or 1 Frape or Coffee, or 1 Ouzo, or 1 Beer in Greece. They drink an average of 4 to 6 per day.
And the V.A.T. on Venzini and cigarettes is not 23% it is higher.
In Australia the 70% of the tax on cigarettes goes into the health system. Where the money is used to buy new equipment and keep the hospitals well equipped and adequately staffed.
If this was the case in Greece. Greece would have the best hospitals in the world with the amount of cigarettes they smoke.
And let us not forget how much money is collected from the numerous road tolls in Greece.
the money from road tolls go to contruction companies lol
Unfortunately even the taxes on cigs incresed in the last 2 years go to Greece’ lenders. I woulnt’d blame the Greeks for not willing to pay taxes as they are everything but reciprocal. They could call them “Poll-Taxes” (charatsi)
Sante and Assos 1, both without filter don’t cost any tax. Tax only for foreign brands?
no tax? are you sure?