
Greece’s center-right New Democracy government, re-elected to office last month, has pledged to press ahead with reforms to modernize the Greek state and private sector, such as upgrading the country’s justice system and proceeding with further digitization of public services.
In remarks to Parliament, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis also laid out the country’s fiscal targets for the next four years, promising the early repayment in billions of euros in bilateral loans and to reduce public debt to below a ratio of 140% of GDP by 2027.
Describing the government’s vision as a “multidimensional modernization,” Mr. Mitsotakis said the government’s program was based on five pillars: “A productive Greece, a social Greece, a digital and green Greece, a just Greece and, of course, a strong Greece.”
In late June, the New Democracy government was returned to office by a wide margin and is credited with undertaking sweeping reforms over the past four years that have helped promote investment and economic growth. However, many in the business community say the government has not gone far enough in overhauling the public sector and, in particular, the judiciary, where court decisions take seven years on average, twice the length of time in the rest of Europe.
“The delay in the administration of justice constitutes the greatest injustice. Because justice must first and foremost be the refuge of the disadvantaged,” said Mr. Mitsotakis. “So, by 2027, together with the Minister of Justice, we have set the ambitious goal of reaching European standards.”