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Athens News Agency: News in English, 08-04-08
CONTENTS
[01] PASOK leader questions PM on privatisations
[01] PASOK leader questions PM on privatisations
Main opposition PASOK party leader George Papandreou tabled a question
in Parliament for Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis on Tuesday regarding
the privatisation of public corporations.
According to the PASOK leader, the government "aims at concealing the
budget's widening deficits through the liquidation of public property."
"If the government's plans are implemented, Greece will be the only
European country in which the biggest ports, all the major airports,
telecommunications, the production of electric power and other vital
sectors of the economy will either be in private hands or will be
controlled by corresponding organisations of other countries," he
said.
Papandreou claimed that this "antiquated and failed policy had been
implemented in the past by extreme neo-liberal governments, such as
those of Margaret Thatcher and Constantine Mitsotakis while today, all
governments, even that of the United States, realise the need for the
control and regulation of markets for the protection of the economy and
of the citizens, while they take measures to shield their strategic
corporations, even the private ones, against aggressive buyouts by
profiteering capital."
Papandreou calls on the prime minister to clarify the government's
intentions regarding the maintenance of public control of public
utilities and other socially beneficial strategic organisations.
He also calls for an explanation as to "what benefit the Greek consumer
will have if decisions on telecommunications, electric power production
and ports are taken by foreign business groups instead of the Greek
state, as well as what is the expediency of the full or partial
granting of these corporations' administration to private interests,
instead of the conclusion of strategic cooperation or individual
partnerships between the public and private sectors, where this is
deemed necessary and under public control."
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