Moscovici: Greece on the right path, but must not jeopardize reforms
EU Economy Commissioner Pierre Moscovici on Thursday reiterated that Greece is on the right path, but stressed that the country needs to stay the course on reforms.
“We have said a lot about Greece, at a time when things were bad or really bad. And we often appear to forget that the [Greek] train has been arriving on time,” Moscovici told the French Senate.
“The Greek train has arrived on time; the 2019 draft budget foresees a 3.5 percent of GDP primary budget surplus and it was found to be in line with [EU] regulations. Growth is returning to a level that could this year stand at 2.3 percent. New jobs are being created and the fact that [Greece] managed to achieve this outstanding primary surplus gave it the leeway to avoid the pension cuts forecast for 2019,” he said.
However, Moscovici said Greece needs to continue with its structural reforms. “[The country] cannot afford to let its guard down,” he said.
“There is no doubt, however, that it is on the right path, the path of sustainable and inclusive growth, which allows some room for socially-minded measures,” he added.
