Greece Mitsotakis New Democracy government 2019-present

Doctrine — stated goals and content

Centre-right liberal tax-cut and digital-state modernisation programme executed inside the post-memorandum fiscal discipline framework (post-2018 enhanced surveillance through August 2022, then EU economic governance and Recovery and Resilience Plan conditionality). Stated doctrine: Greece's 2010-2018 adjustment left an over-taxed, under-invested, over-regulated economy; growth restoration requires cutting tax wedges, digitising public services (gov.gr), attracting FDI via stable property rights and targeted incentives, and running primary surpluses sufficient to return the debt ratio to a sustainable path while recovering investment-grade sovereign rating (achieved October 2023 S&P, December 2023 Fitch, restoring Greece to IG for the first time since 2010). On the left-right axis the government sits centre-right liberal — the most economically-right Greek government of the post-2010 cycle on tax architecture and FDI openness, while interventionist on energy price subsidies during 2022-2023 gas shock and on labour activation. Key policies with dates: ENFIA property-tax reductions (cumulative ~30-50% cut across 2019-2024 including the 2022 reform based on updated 'objective values'); corporate income tax cut from 28% to 24% (2019) then to 22% (2021); solidarity surtax suspension 2020-2021 then permanent abolition 2023; tourism VAT maintained at reduced 13%; minimum wage hikes (raised from €650 to €780 gross by April 2023, €830 April 2024, €880 April 2025); labour-flexibility law 3850/2021 (Hatzidakis, 16 June 2021 — enabling 10-hour workday via time-accounts, digital work-card, 150-hour voluntary overtime); university police / EDIP law (February 2021) establishing a 1,030- officer university-campus force; Recovery and Resilience Plan 'Greece 2.0' submitted April 2021, €36bn (€18bn grants + €18bn loans later raised) across digital, green and labour-market reforms; pension reform 2020 (Vroutsis) reinforcing 2016 Katrougalos framework with capitalisation pillar for auxiliary pensions (Law 4826/2021); primary surplus path (returning to primary surplus 0.1% 2022, 1.9% 2023, targeted 2.4% 2024); TAIPED privatisations (Athens International Airport concession extension 2019, Hellinikon site closing September 2020, Public Power Corporation DEI partial privatisation 2021, DEPA Infrastructure 2022, Egnatia Motorway 2024, Attica regional airports cluster); wiretapping scandal (EYP-Predator, revealed summer 2022) led to resignation of Mitsotakis's nephew Grigoris Dimitriadis and intelligence chief Panagiotis Kontoleon; Tempi train disaster 28 February 2023 (57 dead) exposed chronic rail-signalling under-investment, shaped 2023 campaign rhetoric but did not prevent re-election. Popularity: July 2019 election ND 39.9% (158/300 Vouli seats under the old bonus system), SYRIZA 31.5%, KINAL 8.1%. May 2023 election under new proportional system ND 40.8% (146 seats, short of majority), SYRIZA collapsed to 20.1%; snap June 2023 election under re-activated bonus system ND 40.6% (158 seats, majority renewed), SYRIZA 17.8%, PASOK 11.9%. EU 2019 ND 33.1% (first party, +9.4pp); EU 2024 ND 28.3% (first party but -12.3pp, heaviest single-vote loss since 2009), PASOK 12.8%, SYRIZA 14.9%, new right-populist entrants (Greek Solution 9.3%, Voice of Reason 4.4%, NIKI 4.4%) fragmented the right. Mitsotakis approval 45-55% 2019-2022, fell to 30-40% post-Tempi and post- Predator through 2024-2025. Coherence judgement: internally the most coherent Greek programme since euro entry — tax-cut, digitalisation, and FDI-attraction pillars move jointly centre- right / market-liberal; the inflation-shock subsidies (Power Pass, Fuel Pass) and energy price interventions 2022-2023 are the programme's main policy-content deviation from the stated doctrine.