18.04.2012
By Simon Miller
The European Commission (EC) has set out a 42-page plan to get Greece growing this afternoon.
The EC said that after many months of crisis, the conditions now existed to start moving from crisis to growth in Greece.
Following the structured default and agreement on the second economic adjustment programme, the Commssion highlighted steps it believes Greece need to take in 2012.
EC president Jose Manuel Barroso said: "The people of Greece do not stand alone in their efforts to return the country to growth and jobs. The EU and the wider international community have shown solidarity with the people of Greece on an unprecedented scale. A package of grants, loans and debt forgiveness amounting to €380bn (£313bn) has been mobilised to help Greece. The sacrifices being made by the Greek people will bring rewards in the near future as Greece embraces the priority actions for 2012 identified by the Commission today. "
The Communication also outlined the impact of the crisis on Greece and gave details of the financial support from the EU budget and the technical assistance provided.
The Growth for Greece plan:
•Bank recapitalisation should be completed by September 2012, safeguarding the business autonomy of the banks
•Nominal unit labour costs in the business economy should be reduced by 15 percent in 2012–2014
•A timetable for an overhaul of the national collective agreement for the wage-setting system should be prepared by end July 2012, in consultation with social partners
•A systematic review of export clearance and customs formalities should be completed, stripping away excessive controls and aligning control systems on practices in the rest of the single market
•Further steps should be taken to make it easier to set up a new company
•Public procurement legislation should be radically overhauled by the end of the year and the newly created single procurement authority should become fully operational
•The full implementation of the 2011 law on regulated professions should be finalized before the end of the year, combined with the additional liberalizing measures included in the memorandum of understanding
•Privatisation of public gas and electricity companies this year
•Separation of gas and electricity transmission system operation from generation and supply activities
•A sound regulatory and institutional framework for infrastructure-related assets should be established
•More effective use of the available European Social Fund resources
•The comprehensive reform of the tax system should be carefully prepared in the coming months in order to enhance its efficiency and growth-friendliness
•The reform of the pension system should be finalized through the reform of secondary and supplementary pension schemes and fighting fraud in disability pensions
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