Using the cost of living as a lever and giving his differences with government policy a clear ideological dimension, Antonis Samaras, in his statement yesterday, took another step towards his next political move.The former prime minister launched a fresh, direct attack on Kyriakos Mitsotakis, seeking to frame their disagreement as a clash between two different political outlooks, rather than a matter of personal stubbornness.
The phrase “I did (what I am proposing) in much worse conditions. And they can be done again” encapsulates the message of his intervention, which is also seen as a precursor to the creation of a new party.
Citing social liberalism, which he says he espouses, Mr Samaras contrasts his own view of the state’s role with what he calls the “managerial, neoliberal government under Mitsotakis”.
High prices, he said, “are not only the result of international developments. They are also a matter of government policy”, and he blamed the Maximos Mansion for keeping the tax burden high in order to generate large surpluses and reduce public debt.
By contrast, he argues, there is room for measures that would provide immediate relief to households and businesses without putting fiscal balance at risk.
The former prime minister is setting out his own “red lines” for the management of public finances and emphasising the need for immediate cuts to indirect taxes, arguing that fiscal surpluses leave room for greater support for households and businesses.
This is one of the issues Mr Samaras will continue to raise forcefully in public debate, alongside foreign policy, migration, the woke agenda and the primary sector.
A distinct policy platform
The former prime minister is seeking to establish a distinct set of policy positions in opposition to the current government, which, on the economy, prioritises maintaining fiscal stability, the tax cuts it has already implemented and targeted support.
For his part, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, speaking from Lavrio, defended the fiscal strategy in place, linking sound public finances to the ability to support citizens. He said the country’s fiscal position allows for measures to address the hardships of winter, at a time when European economies are grappling with high prices.
Maintaining fiscal balance, officials at the Maximos Mansion say, is not an end in itself but a prerequisite for funding support measures.
Government spokesman Pavlos Marinakis took a similar line in response to Mr Samaras’s remarks about small and medium-sized businesses. He defended the government’s tax policy, citing tax cuts for sole proprietorships and legal entities, a reduction in advance tax payments, and the abolition of the business levy for individuals and sole proprietorships.
He also pointed to funding for small and medium-sized businesses through the Recovery Fund, noting that the government recognises the problems facing the sector but is seeking “realistic and workable” solutions.
Government officials have chosen to avoid a personal confrontation with Antonis Samaras, at least for as long as he has not announced his new political venture, and to focus instead on their record in all the areas under criticism, from 2019 to the present.