Greece needs ‘growth shock’ says deputy PM

“What Greece needs is a shock of growth,” Deputy Prime Minister Yiannis Dragasakis told The Guardian on Sunday, adding that government ministers on Monday will be discussing a “new growth strategy.”

“We will meet to discuss a new growth strategy that will focus solely on boosting investment and reducing unemployment to pre-crisis levels, that is to say 8 percent in the next 10 years,” he said.

“The positive scenario for Greece is also positive for Europe,” Dragasakis, who was speaking on the sidelines of the Delphi Economic Forum, said in response to speculation about Europe’s future in light of Brexit and the election of Donald Trump to the US presidency.

“For that to happen we have to say ‘enough with austerity’,” Dragasakis said, adding, however, that Greece “will have to compromise” with creditors demanding labor reforms and more pension cuts “even if such demands are totally irrational.”