The strongest hand of the tripartite government of New Democracy, PASOK and the Democratic Left is the privatisation programme. Not all players on the political scene share this view and the main opponent to the privatisation processes is the opposition radical left party SYRIZA. Its long-time member and an experienced politician Dimitris Papadimoulis agreed to present to the readers of GRReporter SYRIZA’s alternative for avoiding privatisation.

Two elderly men almost fainted due to the heat and had to be given first aid.

The increase in VAT for restaurants to 23% was the final nail in the coffin of the sector whose turnover has dropped by 44% in the last two years. As a result, five thousand commercial sites have closed and thirty thousand people are unemployed.

Grigoris Peponis is willing to find out what was his role in the investment fund, which is believed to have purchased a large number of insurances on Greek government bonds, after having had inside information.

Although it has been involved in the dialogue with social partners, the trade union of employees in the private sector has decided to hold a 24-hour strike and protests at the opening of the trade fair in Thessaloniki in September.

The delay for the submission of tax returns for 2011 allowed by the Ministry of Finance played its role in the low state revenue too. The deadline is now scheduled for 16 July.

After nine months of constant strikes, the owners of Greek Steelworks SA have announced that they can no longer maintain the inoperative plant in Aspropyrgos and will close it completely.