With specific numbers and data, senior figures from the Greek Left Alliance (ELAS) are expected today to dismantle the government’s narrative of an economic success story, placing particular emphasis on issues of housing, the cost of living, education, healthcare, wages, and pensions.
According to ELAS officials, they will present the truth across 20 policy areas and demonstrate that the Mitsotakis government is relying on fake news when it speaks of a success story. The press conference will be led by the party’s Economics Spokesperson, Fragkiskos Koutentakis, Labor Spokesperson, Dionysis Teboneras, and ELAS Press Representative, Theoni Koufonikalakou. A few days later, ELAS leader Alexis Tsipras will deliver a speech on Thursday as part of the “Now We Talk” initiative in Peristeri, while on Friday he will address the Economist Conference.
According to sources, ELAS officials will stress, among other things, that “the shopping basket doesn’t stretch far enough,” highlighting the impact of inflation. To illustrate what has been happening to Greek household budgets over time, food prices have risen by 32% between 2020 and 2024.
A comparison of prices for individual food items is revealing. In the past year alone, beef prices rose by 19.2%, lamb by 13.3%, and cooking oils by 11.6% — and the list of price hikes goes on.
When comparing today’s prices with those of 2019 — when New Democracy came to power — the difference becomes even more burdensome.
Essential staples such as milk and bread have seen price increases of up to 60%, while olive oil has more than doubled in price, rising by 111% since 2019. Coffee and beef have both surpassed the 70% mark.
The government’s narrative acknowledges that food prices have risen, but points to the increase in the minimum wage — which it consistently promotes as having reached €950 — as an offsetting factor. However, according to ELAS, this is nothing more than a half-truth, which amounts to a full lie. A comparison of the household basket against the minimum wage in 2019 tells the real story: with the €650 minimum wage of 2019, households could purchase greater quantities of all basic food items — from milk and bread to eggs and meat.
And how does Greece compare with the rest of Europe? This is where the government’s narrative collapses entirely. The average European can afford to buy 2.5 times more food than in 2019, while the average Greek is forced to remove items from their shopping basket.
Greece’s combination of low wages relative to European standards and high food prices is widening the gap with the rest of the EU. For example, the average annual salary in Greece stands at €17,954, compared to €39,808 across Europe. With milk costing €1.35 in Greece versus €0.85–€1.04 in other European countries — and similar disparities applying across all basic food categories — it becomes clear that convergence with Europe exists only in the government’s imagination.
On the issue of rents, ELAS will note that housing costs have risen by 13.8% in Greece, compared to just 4.5% across Europe. When factoring in the proportion of wages spent on rent, the financial pressure on Greek households becomes even more acute.
The government has a ready-made justification narrative, but one that fails to move beyond excuse-making. In practice, the government has remained largely inactive in the face of cartel behavior, market inspections are virtually non-existent, the profits of major corporate groups continue to grow, and price increases have been passed on to consumers in full.
The government continues to tax workers more heavily than shareholders — a factor that further erodes household purchasing power — with the result that 1 in 10 workers is at risk of poverty.
Support measures proposed by ELAS
Greek households are in urgent need of support measures.
As an immediate priority, the following measures must be implemented:
- Establishment of a basic food security basket
- Transparent and audited pricing from producer to shelf
- A price monitoring observatory covering food, energy, and fuel
- Targeted VAT reductions on essential food items
- Strengthening of the Competition Commission
In the short term, within a two-year plan, measures must be taken to support domestic production with the aim of reducing reliance on imports, including:
- A national import substitution plan
- Contract farming for essential food products
- Producer cooperative schemes
- Strategic reserves of essential food items
Finally, over a five-year horizon, the country needs to adopt a comprehensive shift in its productive model.
This means implementing measures that promote the following:
- Upgrading primary production
- Linking the agri-food sector to tourism
- Reducing dependence on imported raw materials
- Water resource management programs
- Export-oriented products with special incentives
