Cost of polls to be contained with wage cuts

The caretaker government is seeking to contain the cost of elections, as the bill from the upcoming polls on September 20, a referendum in July and the general elections in January is expected to reach 120 million euros.

The General Accounting Office has rejected the budget submitted by the previous leadership of the Interior Ministry, setting a ceiling on expenses for the new round at 36.7 million euros, below the cap of 50 million euros demanded by Greece’s creditors.

The cut in expenses will come mainly from a reduction in the pay of civil servants on electoral duty, which accounted for 22 million euros of the 55 million euros spent in January.