“They are publicly posted” replied the New Democracy MP New Democracy Maria Syregela to Nikos Androulakis regarding the fines imposed on businesses that engage in profiteering and whether these fines have been collected.
The president of PASOK intervened with a message during her interview on Real FM. Maria Syregela responded point by point to the opposition’s proposals regarding inflation, taxation, and VAT cuts.
More specifically, Maria Syregela referred the PASOK president to the official, publicly posted data, also emphasizing that his party has all the parliamentary means at its disposal in case he has further questions. As he characteristically stated: “Mr. Androulakis and PASOK can submit a question to Parliament. The data is posted online and is available not only to Mr. Androulakis, but to every citizen.” “We cannot return to the logic of ‘give it all away’ or ‘there is money’,” she noted.
During the interview, Maria Syregela also responded to the policies proposed by Nikos Androulakis regarding VAT reductions on basic goods, pointing out that every measure must be evaluated based on the actual benefit it provides to citizens. Referring to the proposal to reduce VAT on products such as potatoes, milk, and rice, she emphasized that the numerical analysis of the measure indicates a limited net benefit for households, amounting to about 10 leptes per day.
Given, in fact, that PASOK proposed increasing corporate taxes as a measure to finance the loss of VAT revenue, Maria Syregela pointed out that the New Democracy government was the first to impose a tax on the excess profits of large corporations, emphasizing that the opposition did not support such initiatives when they came up for a vote in Parliament.
Staying on the issue of dividend taxation, Maria Syregela debunked the notion that raising a tax rate automatically leads to increased revenue. “When the tax was higher, revenue was lower. Just because you raise the tax doesn’t mean revenue will increase. A lower tax rate may lead to more tax returns being filed and, ultimately, to more public revenue,” she noted.
He also referred to proposals for free public transportation, emphasizing that such announcements require an actuarial study and full cost analysis, as they concern not only the loss of revenue from tickets, but potentially also the need for more routes, more buses, and an overall greater operational burden. “It’s not just a matter of ‘cutting here and giving there.’ When we talk about free tickets, we need to know how much the measure actually costs and what additional needs it creates,” he emphasized.
He also noted that the current government has reduced the public transportation fare from 1.40 euros to 1.20 euros, while students receive a 50% discount and the monthly pass for all modes of transit costs 27 euros—less than one euro per day.
On the issue of inflation, Maria Syregela acknowledged that this is the main problem currently weighing on households, especially retirees, families, and the middle class, noting that there must be even more targeted measures for citizens with the greatest needs. “We must give more to the people with the greatest needs, to families, and to the middle class,” she said.
In closing, Maria Syregela emphasized that citizens are demanding credibility, seriousness, and costed commitments. “People are tired of hearing empty words. They want documented and costed answers,” she noted.
