Greece’s revamped government, fresh from a reshuffle, was under renewed pressure from EU-IMF creditors to deliver proof of reforms as another loan deadline loomed next week.
The so-called troika mission, representing the European Union, the International Monetary Fund and the European Central Bank, wants Athens to implement thousands of state layoffs and cut back a burgeoning health budget deficit, in line with past pledges by Greek administrators.
On Tuesday, the troika held meetings with the ministers of labour and health after seeing the minister of administrative reform on Monday.
Greece must axe 4,000 state jobs by the end of the year and relocate 25,000 civil servants to support understaffed parts of its vast bureaucracy.
A new headache is a runaway deficit at Greece’s main health fund EOPYY, which according to reports has outstripped its allocated budget by 1.2 billion euros ($1.5 billion) in the first five months of the year.
In an effort to meet the layoffs target, Prime Minister Antonis Samaras last month shut down state broadcaster ERT and fired over 2,600 staff.
But the move backfired, sparking outrage and leading Samaras’s smallest coalition ally to abandon the government.
In a broad reshuffle that followed, new ministers were appointed for health, administrative reform, transport, environment, foreign affairs and defence.
A Eurogroup meeting on July 8 will determine whether Greece can draw 6.3 billion euros ($8.2 billion) from its ongoing bailout.
The IMF is also scheduled to decide by the end of July whether to disburse its own scheduled contribution of 1.8 billion euros.
Since 2010, the EU and IMF have committed a total of 240 billion euros to the heavily indebted country.
Revamped Greek govt under fresh creditor pressure
