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Athens News Agency: News in English, 06-12-21
CONTENTS
[01] Kefaloyiannis defends port privatisation
[02] Koumoutsakos on Tehran conference on Holocaust
[01] Kefaloyiannis defends port privatisation
Speaking in Parliament on the fifth and final day of the debate on the
2007 budget, Merchant Marine Minister Manolis Kefaloyiannis on Thursday
defended government efforts to open selected services in Greece's two
major ports, Piraeus and Thessaloniki, to the private sector.
At the same time, he denied that the plan was a privatisation, pointing
out that 75 percent would remain in the state sector.
Justifying the move, Kefaloyiannis pointed out that the payroll
accounted for 75% of running costs for the Piraeus Port Organisation.
"There was a risk that, at the end of our four-year term, we would hand
over a new, bankrupt "Olympic Airways", where 100% of the costs would
be the payroll," he added.
He also claimed that there were distortions and excesses in the present
system, with a few privileged employees earning up to 12,000 euros a
month, or the payment of 2.5 million euros in overtime to 70
individuals for the maintenance of 12 vessels that were not currently
sea-worthy.
[02] Koumoutsakos on Tehran conference on Holocaust
Foreign ministry spokesman George Koumoutsakos on Thursday expressed
Greeceās deep concern, thus reflecting the overall atmosphere in the
EU, regarding the conference held recenntly in Tehran on the
Holocaust.
Koumoutsakos stated that the conference aimed at creating doubts over
the Holocaust issue and added that the Greek parliament has passed a
law declaring January 27 as Holocaust Day, while Greece has
participated in the UN Security Council decisions and resolutions
reached on the issue.
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