By Dimitris Papadimoulis is Vice President of the European Parliament, head of Syriza party delegation.

During the last couple of years the Greek economy has been moved from a state of prolonged crisis into a state of steady recovery. The revised growth figures of the European Commission for the 2016-18 period come to re-affirm the positive developments, as in 2017 the economy is expected to grow by 2.7% and in 2018 by 3.1%. In 2016, the economy grew by 0.3% for the first time since 2008, against the predictions of both the European Commission and the IMF for regression of -0.3% and -0.5% respectively.

Similarly for unemployment rates. Since the end of 2014, unemployment has been progressively falling, from 27% to 23.5% in the last quarter of 2016. This downward trend is expected to continue, and by the end of 2018, the European Commission predicts the figure to stand at 20%. Still, the numbers are extremely high, but comparing the massive surge between 2009 and 2014, there is significant improvement.

Steady signs of recovery, coupled with increasing growth rates, declining unemployment and the positive steps on tax collection mechanisms are a proof that things are changing. The primary surplus for 2016 exceeded the target of 0.5% of GDP, reaching 2% (i.e. which is 4 times higher), leaving room for the government to alleviate the pressure on low-income pensioners by providing the one-time relief package last December and to temporarily freeze a VAT increase in the Aegean islands where there are thousands of refugees and migrants.

On top of this, Greece has recently agreed to short-term debt relief measures that are about to significantly contribute in reducing gross-financing needs and make investors feel more comfortable. It is therefore important that economic and political stability are preserved and that Greece remains focused on track of reforms to successfully exit the fiscal adjustment program in mid-2018.

In this respect, it is vital to conclude the bailout review, pending since late 2016, and to reach a fair compromise. The IMF and the German Finance Minister Mr Schauble should both rely on their analysis and approach on the most recent evidence of fiscal performance, published by Eurostat and the European Commission, and the ability of the Greek economy to produce fiscal surpluses. It is urgent to address the fiscal and primary surpluses for the years after 2018 and to avoid excessive demands (i.e. new austerity cuts and primary surpluses at 3.5% for ten years) that will damage the progress that has been made and undermine mid and long-term sustainable growth, which is beneficial for both Greece and its creditors. The gap in fiscal estimates between the creditors should be reduced so that the economy can continue recovering and reforms can keep yielding results.

Furthermore, the Greek government is arguing in favour of a growth-friendly policy mix that will make possible a better GDP output in the coming years, securing tax compliance and combatting tax evasion. On that front, the use of cards in payments and the improvement of tax collection administration helped identify many cases of tax evasion. The policy mix suggested by the Greek side has been endorsed by the European Commission and the ESM with both institutions pressing for the conclusion of the bailout review.

Finally, it has to be noted that the controversy between the creditors over the Greek program has nothing to do with the performance of the economy and the efficiency of reforms. It is common sense that Greece is doing way better than expected and that the delay has strong political nuances. Amid electoral campaigns and competing interests in Europe, it is quite challenging to find a solution that will keep our European future united against populist, anti-European and extreme right political forces.

Dimitris Papadimoulis is Vice President of the European Parliament, head of Syriza party delegation.

The opinions expressed in this article do not represent the views of Euronews

Here's the link: http://www.euronews.com/2017/02/18/opinion-greeces-economy-strongly-recovers-for-first-time-since-2010

Papadimoulis on Brexit - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R3L2EG8JsCo

British people have chosen the logic of isolationism and xenophobia.
The views of Mr. Faradje and Ms. Le Pen, whose agenda is the dissolution of Europe, have won.

The voting result is absolutely democratic and must be respected.
And it is already causing uncertainty and worries
- first of all in United Kingdom, but also in Europe and worldwide.

The Brexit message is very powerful. It would be impossible -if not foolish- to ignore.

EU must change, otherwise it will face the risk of dismantle and dissolution.

EU needs
• development and not austerity for ever
• strengthening cohesion against inequality
• more democracy and transparency,
rather than shady decisions taken behind closed doors.

This historical need for a big change and not for the dissolution of Europe, is
-above all- responsibility of the Left and progressive forces across Europe, and especially of the young generation.

Against the current stagnation and the increasing inequalities generated by the dominant neo-liberal policy,
against the agenda of the dissolution and the isolation
that the far-right puts forward...
the Left and progressive forces of our continent must show NOW
a convincing and realistic project for change and progress,
through the cooperation of European peoples.

Με επιτυχία στέφθηκε η διακομματική προσπάθεια Ελλήνων και Κυπρίων Ευρωβουλευτών στην οποία συνέβαλε και η Ευρωομάδα της Αριστεράς, ώστε η Ελλάδα και ειδικότερα η ΔΕΗ καθώς και η Ελληνική Τσιμεντοβιομηχανία και η Βιομηχανία Ασβέστου, να ενταχθούν, ομαλά και με βάση τα πραγματικά δεδομένα, στις προβλέψεις της έκθεσης ΕΤS, που αφορά στην εμπορία ρύπων, προστατεύοντας έτσι δεκάδες χιλιάδες θέσεις απασχόλησης.

Η ψηφοφορία στην Ολομέλεια του Ευρωπαϊκού Κοινοβουλίου, που διεξήχθη στις 15 Φεβρουαρίου, σφράγισε το δικαίωμα της ΔΕΗ να έχει πρόσβαση στο καθεστώς εμπορίας ρύπων μέσω της αλλαγής του τρόπου υπολογισμού. Η αρχική πρόβλεψη αφορούσε υπολογισμό με βάση το έτος 2013, όταν και η Ελλάδα δεν πληρούσε τις προϋποθέσεις για να συμπεριληφθεί σε τέτοια ρύθμιση με βάση το ύψος του ΑΕΠ της, ενώ μετά από την εγκριθείσα τροπολογία, στο έτος αναφοράς προστέθηκαν το 2014 και το 2015, έτη κατά τα οποία τα μεγέθη της οικονομίας είχαν χειροτερέψει λόγω της ύφεσης.
Με βάση τις τροπολογίες που κατατέθηκαν και συγκεκριμένα τις υπ’ αριθμόν 38, η ΔΕΗ αποκτά το δικαίωμα πρόσβασης στον Ταμείο Εκσυγχρονισμού της ΕΕ και σε κονδύλια που θα ενισχύσουν την ήδη επιτυχημένη προσπάθεια της για μείωση των ρύπων κατά 55% μέχρι και το 2030, ανακατευθύνοντας παράλληλα την παραγωγή της, με σχεδιασμένη μείωση της συμμετοχής του λιγνίτη, προς όφελος των ανανεώσιμων μορφών ενέργειας.

Παράλληλα, με τις τροπολογίες 27 και 84 που κατέθεσε η Ευρωομάδα της Αριστεράς και που, εκτός των Ελλήνων και Κύπριων Ευρωβουλευτών, στηρίχθηκαν από ένα ευρύ πολιτικό φάσμα, δόθηκε «πράσινο φως» στην Ελληνική και Κυπριακή Βιομηχανία Τσιμέντου και Ασβέστου, καθώς απειλούνταν με ενδεχόμενη κατάρρευση εφόσον αποκλείονταν από το καθεστώς των δωρεάν δικαιωμάτων. Σε αυτή την περίπτωση η Τσιμεντοβιομηχανία και η Ασβεστοβιομηχανία σε Ελλάδα και Κύπρο θα κινδύνευαν με αφανισμό καθώς θα είχαν συγκριτικό μειονέκτημα σε σχέση με αντίστοιχες βιομηχανίες γειτονικών χωρών που είναι μεγαλύτερες σε μέγεθος και που θα κατάφερναν να αντιμετωπίσουν ενδεχόμενες συνέπειες πολύ πιο εύκολα.

Αναφερόμενος στο αποτέλεσμα της ψηφοφορίας, ο Δημήτρης Παπαδημούλης δήλωσε: «Έγινε ένα αναγκαίο και θετικό βήμα, χάρη σε μια αποτελεσματική διακομματική συνεργασία, στηριγμένη σε στοιχεία και επιχειρήματα. Ευχαριστώ όσες και όσους συνέβαλαν σε αυτό».

Ακολουθεί η σχετική επιστολή που έστειλε την Τρίτη 14/2/2017 ο Αντιπρόεδρος του Ευρωπαϊκού Κοινοβουλίου και Επικεφαλής της Ευρωομάδας του ΣΥΡΙΖΑ Δημήτρης Παπαδημούλης, σε όλους τους Ευρωβουλευτές, καλώντας τους σε υποστήριξη των παραπάνω τροπολογιών, οι οποίες, σχεδόν όλες υιοθετήθηκαν με ευρύτατη διακομματική πλειοψηφία από την Ολομέλεια του Ευρωκοινοβουλίου:

Dear Colleagues,

In the light of the Plenary voting tomorrow on A8-0003/2017 «Cost-effective emission reductions and low-carbon investments», let me draw your attention concerning ETS and the side effects it will have in the industry of Greece and Cyprus.

Greece fully endorses and supports the efforts to limit the overall emissions and at the same time acts in order to establish a low carbon economy, following the policy guidelines of the climate and energy framework 2030. Overall, Greece has set a goal to reduce its emissions by 55% up to 2030, well over the 43% EU target as compared to 2005. The goal of Greece is to switch from coal to renewables as its basic fuel directly and without passing through a «gas» intermediate phase.

More precisely, in the EU carbon trading system (ETS), a series of measures have been provisioned to mitigate the burden of climate policies on the most vulnerable sectors and countries. Greece is requesting its inclusion in such compensation schemes because its economy is certainly vulnerable, and its GDP has fallen from 2014 onwards below the 60% of the EU average, which is the eligibility criterion set in the proposal of the European Parliament’s industry committee. In other words, we ask the EU to take into account the latest GDP figures of 2015 and 2015 and not the older ones of 2013. Therefore, we propose to support the following Amendments 145,147,148,149, the links of which you can find here: goo.gl/vr9LMh and goo.gl/O861tu, related to the Modernisation Fund and the transitional free allocation to installations for electricity production.

By including Greece in such a scheme, it will also have access to the Modernization Fund which is required for modernising the transmission and distribution networks among many others. Greece is the most south-eastern country of the EU, with limited access to electricity grid interconnections, while it has a host of isolated islands that rely on oil for electricity generation. Modernizing energy assets, developing renewable generation on the islands and interconnecting them to the mainland grid requires funding that Greece finds hard to raise.

At the same time, we need to protect the local small cement industries in the EU, and especially those established in Greece and Cyprus. Therefore we oppose the deletion of the cement industry from the carbon leakage list and we suggest to delete the proposal for a «border adjustment mechanism», by voting against the second part (split vote) of the ENVI Amendments 12 and 27 and the AM 84 as a whole. Such a decision will create great uncertainty and will threaten 13.000 jobs, currently working in those industries (Spain, Greece, Cyprus and Portugal will be heavily affected) and at the same time will not manage to reduce the emissions.

Kind Regards,

Dimitrios Papadimoulis
Vice President of the European Parliament
Head of the SYRIZA Delegation

Opening session of the European Development Days (EDD)
15 June 2016 (Brussels - Tour & Taxis)

Ladies and gentlemen,
On behalf of Martin Schulz, President of the European Parliament, it is a pleasure to speak at the opening of the European Development Days here in Brussels. And I am honoured and pleased to see that distinguished world leaders like UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, and numerous heads of state and government are also present today. It shows that the Development Days have developed into a key event and meeting opportunity for all those who care about development. It also confirms that the fight against poverty and hunger supporting at the same time social cohesion continues to be at the top of the international agenda. It is also a good occasion to ask ourselves if we have done enough to boost international development in an inclusive and equitable way.
In 2015 we celebrated the European year for development, and progress was achieved in the previous twenty years towards decreased child mortality, access to clean water, and a reduction in extreme poverty. 2015 was a very difficult year for Europe and these difficulties regarding economy, growth, migration and refugees and security still persist. However, I am glad to see that last year the EU helped achieving two important international successes:
First, the United Nations Sustainable Development Summit in September adopted the 2030 Agenda. The 17 collectively agreed Sustainable Development Goals and 169 specific targets provide a comprehensive agenda for sustainable development up to 2030. Now it is time to establish a robust framework for implementation and review of progress. We must ensure that parliaments and civil society play their significant role together with states and governments. Because of the universal nature of the Sustainable Development Goals, it will require the EU and its Member States to implement them in their own policies. I am looking forward to concrete proposals from the Commission for an implementation strategy, which will be discussed throughout Europe.
The role of the European Parliament should be central in this debate and we are ready to participate and contribute in a concrete way.
The second international success in 2015 was the Climate Agreement reached in Paris in December. This was in itself a formidable achievement given the numerous challenges that had to be overcome. The climate and development agendas are closely linked: If we do not tackle climate change, we will not be able to reach the Sustainable Development Goals, and vice versa. The first priority is the swift ratification of the Paris Agreement. The European Parliament will do its utmost to ensure quick ratification by the EU, on which the Commission published his proposal last week, and urges all EU Member States to also ratify the Agreement well in advance of the next Climate Conference in Marrakesh. The Parliament will push for the urgent implementation of the agreement and for significant financing pledges made in the context of mitigation and adaptation actions in developing countries;
Despite these two major international successes, a number of the challenges remain - sadly - still relevant and responsibilities lay upon all of us!.
- First of all, development budgets are still too small. Many EU countries continue to fall behind in their commitments to deliver development assistance. This could be partially understandable for countries in economic crisis, but not for others whose economies are growing. I am also concerned that some member states have begun to report assistance to refugees provided in Europe as Official Development Assistance.
- Second, it is sad to see that not much progress has been made on illicit financial flows. It is alarming that, according to some estimates, illicit financial flows out of Africa could be twice as much as the official development assistance received by Africa. This constitutes a real obstacle to winning the fight against poverty. The European Parliament takes this issue very seriously. Following the Panama Papers leaks, we decided to set-up a Committee of Inquiry to investigate failures in implementing EU legislation on money laundering, tax avoidance and tax evasion.
Europe has a responsibility to exert pressure and close tax havens, but other parts of the world need to do the same, because this is a truly global problem.
- An even bigger challenge is the continued migration. More than sixty million people have fled terrorism and war, but also hunger, human rights abuses and oppression. Forced displacement has reached unprecedented levels, which is stretching the limits of the humanitarian response capacity. More than 1 million people crossed the Mediterranean Sea in 2015 and more than 200 000 people have already done so in 2016. Sadly, the Mediterranean has turned into the deadliest migration route in the world with more than two and a half thousand deaths already this year. Unfortunately, even now, there are Member States refusing to receive refugees, as part of the agreed by all European relocation plan. The EU decision have to be implemented! I call upon the EU Member States for a united and unified EU response, based on solidarity, responsibility and in full respect of international obligations. After decades of efforts to close the gap between developed and developing countries, we have failed to give concrete prospects for growth to these countries, driving their peoples to the last solution of migration, putting their lives and their children’s lives at risk.
To manage the many consequences of migration, I welcome the outcome of the World Humanitarian Summit in Istanbul, which acknowledged the need to reshape the course of humanitarian action. The European Union and its Member States committed to strong progress in the five responsibility areas formulated by the UN, and notably to prevent and end conflicts, to uphold the norms that safeguard humanity and to forge better links between humanitarian and development assistance. All of us should be really committed to implement these goals.
The Humanitarian, Sustainable Development, Climate and Valetta summits reminded us of the need to work on the underlying causes of displacement. A strong link must be established between the Agenda for Humanity and the 2030 Agenda for the Sustainable Development Goals if we want to ensure that we "leave no-one behind".
This is essential, because, it’s one thing to boost development, and it’s another thing to distribute the necessary development and the produced wealth with justice for all. Therefore, we should never forget that cohesion policies and development funds, should be canalized to the weaker and most vulnerable countries and social groups.
But what we maybe need most of all is a different attitude in dealing with each other. The past year has seen a growth in nationalism, populism and self-centred behaviour in politics all over the world. The idea that countries can solve their own problems alone and keep neighbours’ problems and international crises outside the door by building walls has sadly taken root. In an increasingly interdependent world, this will never solve the problems of our time. Nor will blaming and rejecting particular religions help us in solving our crises. We must fight extremism of any kind, religious fanaticism and its violent excesses, but not religion itself. What the world needs now is a positive spirit of solidarity, cooperation and inclusion. We can solve the problems of our time if we work together and don't fight each other.
In a globalised world, it is not any more the case that a conflict or a humanitarian crisis, even if it takes place far from us, won’t affect us. We should see what we did wrong and how we will solve this problem together! I hope this conference can set a step in that direction.
Thank you for your attention.