PASOK-Movement for Change leader Nikos Androulakis presented a comprehensive plan of five commitments to strengthen local government at the annual regular conference of the Central Union of Municipalities of Greece (KEDE) in Kalamata.
Mr Androulakis sharply criticised government policy, describing a dual institutional and economic crisis that is limiting municipalities’ ability to meet the needs of local communities. He accused the government of creating a highly centralised state by taking powers away from municipalities in the areas of water, waste, energy and urban planning.
He focused in particular on local government funding, saying the shortfall in funding for municipalities’ operating needs stood at €2.5bn, while the 2027 state budget provided for no increase in their funding. He also argued that the government was withholding revenue from the Landfill Levy and excluding municipalities from the Climate Crisis Resilience Fee.
“In practice, they want you to depend on central government,” Nikos Androulakis said, adding that PASOK was seeking a mandate to govern the country in order to reverse the situation after the next general election.
Financial autonomy
The first commitment is to give municipalities genuine financial autonomy. The PASOK leader noted that just 3.4% of Greece’s state budget goes to local government, compared with 15% in Spain, 17% in Portugal and 20% in France.
He pledged to transfer the full amount of statutory funds to municipalities, ending the withholding of 60% of the revenue to which they are entitled. He also promised that a significant share of revenue from the Climate Crisis Resilience Fee would go directly to municipalities. In addition, he proposed setting up a Regional Resilience Fund to finance flood defences, fire prevention measures and natural disaster preparedness.
Institutional reform
The second commitment is a broad programme of institutional reform, including scrapping New Democracy’s Code and establishing a new framework through dialogue with local government. According to Mr Androulakis, the new Code would guarantee administrative and financial autonomy, with a clear division of responsibilities between central government, regions and municipalities. Any powers transferred to local government would have to be accompanied by the corresponding funding and the necessary staff.
He also announced plans to give KEDE’s opinion formal standing on key legislative measures affecting municipalities, and to change the electoral system to ensure a strong, democratic mandate from local communities.
Restoring powers
The third pillar is the restoration of local government powers. PASOK has pledged to repeal government measures which, it says, have taken powers away from municipalities and regions, restoring their substantive role in waste and water management, the development of renewable energy sources and urban planning.
In this context, Mr Androulakis said municipalities, producers and co-operatives should be given priority for grid connections as part of the green transition. He also singled out island municipalities, calling for respect for carrying-capacity studies and proposing a dedicated fund for investment, financed by the difference in revenue between the reduced and prevailing VAT rates on islands where the reduced rate does not apply.
Development planning
The fourth commitment is to ensure local government plays a meaningful role in the country’s development planning. The PASOK leader criticised the government over the way the Recovery Fund was designed and implemented, arguing that municipalities and regions had no meaningful say in decisions on how the available funds were used.
The fifth and final commitment is to strengthen municipal social services by providing stable and adequate funding for municipal clinics, the “Help at Home” programme, services for homeless people and other social services. As he stressed, people who rely on these services are an ideological and political priority for PASOK.
Concluding his speech, Mr Androulakis linked strengthening local government to the need for wider political change, arguing that Greece needs a modern European state, with strong institutions and growth that benefits society as a whole in every part of the country.