With the riots already happening and the austerity measures beggining to cause panic it is interesting that the EU is making it clear that the barricades are not tall enough on Athenian streets.
What is at present pretty localised trouble in that unhappy country is set to get far far worse if this is anything to go by.
"They [the EU] are telling us the current measures will only cut two percentage points. They are pushing very hard for another package of around €4 billion," the official, who asked not to be identified. "Greece thinks a package of €2 billion to €2.5 billion will be enough to achieve the targets," he said.
The imperial accountants have swung in, and swung out and are to deliver their instructions to the provincial Greecian Government next week.
In order to meet those goals, the government has announced a series of spending cuts and tax increases that it believes will produce a combined €8 billion to €10 million in savings and additional revenue.
So far, those measures include a freeze on civil service wages, cutting public-sector entitlements by 10% on average, a fuel tax increase, and closing dozens of tax loopholes for certain professions—including some civil servants—who now pay less than their fair share in taxes.
But Greece's European partners remain unconvinced. Since the EU issued its rhetorical support for Greece on Feb. 12, EU members including Germany and France have demanded that Greece take further steps to close its budget gap before they commit to any specific financial support for the country. The new measures are likely to include an increase in the current value-added tax rate of 19%, more cuts in civil service entitlements, and higher duties on luxury items, like boats and expensive cars.
It is going to be a difficult spring.
3 comments:
Could this be the shape of things to come for Post-election Britain? We will soon find out.
It's interesting that the Greeks are domesticaly being fed that it's all the US fault, not their ridiculously corrupt govt or the EU.
There is no loyalty to the state in Greece as it is corrupt and nepotistic. All this talk of not paying 'fair' shares of tax is almost a mute point. Loyalty is to family simply because govt cannot be trusted, and the EU have been in bed with the Greek govt from the start.
Do you know that Greeks buy all the time weapons from US and European Countries: France and Germany because of the attack-behaviour of Turkey. They spend a lot of money for those weapons.
The European Union doesn't protect Greece, the southest frontiers of European Union because they want to shell their weapons.
In Greece, the sallary of the employees is not very high as in England, Germany, France, Italy, North Europe. It is very low. And now what. For all the troubles Greece is responsible. Can you believe that? Of course not. Germany with low price of Euro gain a lot of money for now. USA also gain a lot of money with the rising price of dollar against EURO. We must learn that nothing is like they want us to believe.
Oil now gaining high prices. Countries like USA, Russia, and the Arabic World start gaining money again, and Greece is responsible? Come on.... it's very easy to believe that.
We also know that the economic crisis started from USA and then came to EUROPE. We must not forget that. USA know wants to go on and start the raise of their economy.
We must also not forget that with the rise of EURO against dollar before one year, was the reason for some companies to gain a lot of money. And know they want to gain again.
You must know that the most countries of the european financial union, as Germany, made some fake stats to make that.
But it is Germany, not Greece. It's France not Greece, It's Spain not Greece, It's Italy not Greece.
In Greece the monthly sallary is 750 euro, and they will not rise that for 2 years. Oil cost 1,34 euro/litre and they rise that to 1,5 euro/litre. They will rise the tax from 19% to 21%.
One old man (from 67 years old) paid for 35 years of work with 600 euro per month when stops the work.
So i don't think Greeks is responsible. I think Greeks is the easy solution. Greeks is not easy to make them changed. So they want to see if they can make Greeks changed then they will change all Europe to more difficult sallaries, more difficult taxes. No money for unemployess, not money for pregnants. So in Greece they must accept the solution that European Union will give to them. If they accept those sollution then all Europe will come next.
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