Roundup: Greek gvn't tables "first comprehensive" reforms list to Eurogroup

Greek government tabled a "first comprehensive" list of proposed reform measures for approval by the Eurogroup teleconference on Tuesday under the Feb. 20 deal for a four-month extension of the four year bailout to June, according to government officials.

Cabinet ministers confirmed speaking to media that the measures presented were in accordance with Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras' policy statement to the parliament and pre-election anti-bailout pledges to Greek people.

The reforms "would be specified and agreed by the end of April" working closely with European partners and institutions and International Monetary Fund, Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis is said to have stressed in a letter attached to the catalogue.

The list of reforms which was not made public officially, was a prerequisite for the ratification of Friday's deal by national assemblies and April's review so that Athens can count on more financial aid to keep afloat until renegotiating a further debt load relief in the summer.

According to Finance Ministry sources the Greek government has proposed policies to deal with the humanitarian crisis by providing free medical care, food stamps, shelter and other assistance to the most vulnerable groups of society.

The government would move forward ensuring "that its fight against the humanitarian crisis has no negative fiscal effect," according to the sources.

This reassurance to creditors that the proposed measures would not lead to a derailment of fiscal adjustment efforts seemed to have been repeated several times in the catalogue.

The list sent to Brussels was also said to include references to the goals of combating corruption and tax evasion and to create a fair taxation system.

On taxation it was stressed that "robust efforts will be made to improve collection and fight evasion making full use of electronic means and other technological innovations."

Regarding corruption, according to Finance Ministry sources, the list included a pledge to turn the fight against corruption into a national priority, to target fuel and tobacco products' smuggling and to tackle money laundering.

The Greek government has also pledged to reform the public sector, to reduce bureaucracy and control public spending in all sectors. In some cases the specific proposals will be tabled "in collaboration with European and international institutions, including the OECD."

The number of 'special advisors' in general government and benefits of ministers, MPs and other state officials will be reduced and a transparent, electronic, real time institutional framework for public tenders/procurements will be established.

In the context of efforts to stimulate the real economy, according to the sources, Greece committed to "improve swiftly, in agreement with the institutions, the legislation for repayments of tax and social security arrears," to provide some breathing space to households and companies.

The government was said to have committed to deal with non-performing loans in a manner that considers fully the banks' capitalisation, the functioning of the judiciary system, the state of the real estate market, social justice issues, and any adverse impact on the government's fiscal position.

In this growth-boosting framework of policies, in regards to the privatization program and public asset management to attract investment in key sectors and utilise the state's assets efficiently, according to government sources, the Greek authorities "will commit not to roll back privatisations that have been completed. Where the tender process has been launched the government will respect the process, according to the law."

Also, according to government sources, the new administration would "review privatisations that have not yet been launched, with a view to improving the terms so as to maximise the state's long term benefits, generate revenues, enhance competition in the local economies, promote national economic recovery, and stimulate long term growth prospects."

In the case of labor market reforms, Greece was said to have promised commitment to "raise minimum wages in a manner that safeguards competitiveness and employment prospects." The scope and timing of changes to the minimum wage would be made in consultation with social partners and the European and international institutions.

Concerning the pension system, according to the sources, Athens seemed to have promised to lenders to continue working on administrative measures to "unify and streamline pension policies and eliminate loopholes and incentives that give rise to an excessive rate of early retirements throughout the economy."

Finally in a message to criticized media barons Varoufakis' list was said to contain a pledge to "activate immediately the current (though dormant) legislation that regulates the revenues of media (press and electronic), ensuring (through appropriately designed auctions) that they pay the state market prices for frequencies used." Endit