Tag Archives: pension cuts

The Euro Working Group has reportedly given the green light to Greece to scrap implementation of further pension cuts as of 1. January 2019. Citing a well-informed source, state news agency amna reported Thursday afternoon that the heads of the eurozone finance ministries were “warmly positive” about the Greek budget …

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The representatives of the Finance Ministries of the eurozone countries appeared positive on the non-implementation of the pension cuts measures in Greece during Thursday’s meeting of the Euro Working Group, state news agency amna reports. The Greek side briefed the EWG on its intention not to proceed with the further …

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The European Commission has approved Greece’s first post-bailout draft budget without requiring the implementation of legislated pension cuts, the Greek prime minister said on Saturday. “The European Commission approved the Greek budget without pension cuts after eight years of austerity,” Tsipras said, calling the development a “success”. There has been …

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Former Eurogroup chief Jeroen Dijsselbloem wrote a blog post about the pensions system in general and the one in Greece in particular. He supports the Greek government position that  the controversial pension cuts “are unnecessary.” However, at the same time he claims that “the statutory retirement age in Greece will …

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The International Monetary Fund referred  Greece to Brussels, when Finance Minister Euclid Tsakalotos presented the government’s arguments that cutting pensions was not a structural measure. During the meeting with IMF’s Managing Director Christine Lagarde and the head of the Fund’s European department Poul Thomsen in Bali, Tsakalotos argued that there …

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Germany says Nein to freezing of further pension cuts and calls on Greece to stick to the reforms path as agreed in summer with the completion of the third bailout program. It was the press office of Chancellor Angela Merkel that sent the dry message following a question by Greek …

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Head of Eurogroup Mario Centeno opened the door a bit wider for the possibility that the measure for further pension cuts may not be implemented as of 1.1. 2019. The measure is “a fiscal” one and not a “structural measure,” he said on Monday. He suggested that there may be …

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To cut or not to cut? The  upcoming austerity measure of pension cuts as of 1.1. 2019 became top on the agenda of political debate between the government, the opposition parties and the media on Friday. An exclusive report by Athens News Agency said that Greece’s creditors considered the “social …

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Increase in minimum wage, tax relief, efforts to avoid the upcoming further cuts in pensions and the broadening of the tax-free basis. These are the targets of Greece’s coalition  government SYRIZA-ANEL now that the country has exited the last bailout program. The government targets for the next day is the …

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Greece’s prime minister, Alexis Tsipras, and main opposition leader, Kyriakos Mitsotakis from conservative New Democracy, exchanged “French” for the sake of  homme fatal, the EU Commissioner, Pierre Moscovici, during a Plenary debate about Greek economy  on Thursday. Reason for the verbal  duel between the prime minister and the main opposition …

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European Commission technocrats must have been in a trolling mood when they wrote the Pensions Adequacy Report 2018. They raise concern about the cuts in pensions and low-pensioners benefits they demanded from Greece to implement in the context of the 3. bailout as “all these provisions are expected to have …

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European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker urged euro zone countries to draw up more debt relief measures for Greece next month. He said that Athens needed help after making “huge progress” in its economic reforms. “Further pension cuts is a bad advice,” Juncker said. In an interview to Greek economic news …

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Greece cannot accept demands from the International Monetary Fund to cut its pensions yet again in order to achieve a primary surplus target in two years, Greek Finance Minister Euclid Tsakalotos said on Thursday. Athens has proposed an overhaul of its pension system to make the system viable by increasing …

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Greek police fired tear gas at demonstrators who gathered outside the parliament to commemorate the pensioner pharmacist who committed suicide on Wednesday morning – just a few meters away. Protesters chanted slogans against the government and some of them hurled smoke granades, stones and bitter organges at the riot policemen. They …

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Five new changes in Pension Reform Bill are required by the EU/ECB/IMF-troika, currently in Athens for consultation with the Minister of Labor. Speaking yesterday morning in ANT1 (the TV show “Good Morning Greece), Labor Minister Andreas Loverdos said that the troika, fearing a possible collapse of the Pensions/Insurance Institutions, calls …

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