On Monday, July 6, the sector heads of the Development Committee of PASOK-Movement for Change, Anna Diamantopoulou and George Nikitiadis, as part of the Movement’s initiatives on inflation, market functioning, and the protection of citizens’ incomes.
According to the relevant announcement, the meeting focused on prices of basic goods, recent government measures, the need to reduce the VAT on essential products, as well as broader issues affecting the final cost to consumers.
Issues related to agricultural production, manufacturing, transportation, energy, bank financing, the operations of corporate groups and multinationals, as well as working conditions for the approximately 120,000 supermarket employees, were discussed.
PASOK emphasizes that inflation cannot be addressed with piecemeal announcements and public relations measures that lack any real impact. The price on the shelf is the end result of a series of distortions in the economy, and a comprehensive plan is needed that includes oversight, transparency, reductions in tax burdens on essential goods, support for production, and meaningful protection of Greek families’ disposable income.
After the meeting, Anna Diamantopoulou stated:
“When the government fails to curb inflation, then inflation brings down the government. This happens in every country, and it is happening now in Greece as well. Inflation ‘eats away’ at people’s income and ‘eats away’ at the income of the poorest classes.
Today we had a very constructive meeting with the Hellenic Supermarket Association. The discussion also touched on the recent measures—it turned out that no one knows what the so-called 2,000 codes are, and they essentially do not exist— it’s just another publicity stunt; and of course we discussed the issue of VAT and its reduction on basic goods, a measure with which the Greek Supermarket Association also agrees, because this is a trend happening throughout Europe, with the businesses themselves guaranteeing that this will obviously be passed on to consumers.
PASOK does not believe that the problem is limited solely to shelf prices. The issue is the overall functioning of the economy. It concerns agricultural production, industry, transportation, energy, the employment of the 120,000 supermarket workers and their working conditions, as well as the need to invest in these people, as well as issues related to the internal operations of corporate groups and multinationals, the banking system, and investments—and, of course, the issue of reducing the VAT rate on basic goods and the functioning of the Competition Commission.
“The problem, taken as a whole, is the functioning of the economy, which is reflected in consumer prices and is essentially disrupting the daily lives of Greek families.”