New survey shows 700,000 Greeks closer to poverty line

Greece’s middle class is dwindling and about 700,000 people are now closer to the poverty line, a new survey has found.

According to data provided by the Dianeosis nonprofit think tank, the percentage of people at risk of poverty or social exclusion has risen from 28.3 in 2007 to 35.6 in 2016.

This means that a significant segment of the population that would be considered to be middle class before the onset of Greece’s financial crisis – about 700,000 people – are now at great risk of poverty or social marginalization.

Men and women were more or less equally affected by the trend, the survey found, while noting that people aged over 55 were least affected.