Education minister defends bill on private universities, calls for opposition support

Education Minister Kyriakos Pierrakakis has called on Greece’s opposition parties to back a controversial piece of legislation that will pave the way for the establishment of private universities in Greece.

“We need to address the issue together,” he said in an interview with Real News published on Sunday, referring to the bill that, he said, will be brought to Parliament by mid-January.

Critics of the bill, which sets the terms for foreign, non-profit universities to open branches in Greece and to forge partnerships with local institutions, argue that it defies constitutional provisions for free tertiary education.

Pierrakakis responded by saying that the government’s 1-billion-euro plan seeks to “liberate public universities from red tape and sundry hangups… and to liberate tertiary education from the outdated state monopoly.”

He added that the legislation is in line with the relevant European Union regulations and “with the majority of public opinion.”

The minister said that the plan will also help Greece develop into a “regional education center.”