Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis won parliamentary backing for his government’s agenda, clearing a four-year path for improving the economy and reforming the country.
Mitsotakis revealed his economic plans this week and pledged in a Bloomberg interview to repay €5.3 billion ($5.8 billion) of bailout loans ahead of schedule this year. He said his goal is to regain investment-grade status for Greek debt by the end of the year for the first time in 13 years.
“Now it’s time for work,” Mitsotakis told lawmakers in Athens in a speech before Saturday’s confidence vote. His New Democracy-led government won 158 votes of support in the 300-seat chamber.
Mitsotakis’s program includes campaign pledges to further reduce tax and increase wages and pensions. He also promised to restructure Greece’s national health care. He says the first legislation he’ll present for public consultation would allow all Greeks living abroad to vote in national elections.
Read more: Mitsotakis Pledges to Cut Greek Debt With Eye on Credit Upgrade
Finance Minister Kostis Hatzidakis said Saturday that the government will allow non-banking institutions to make loans and will abolish special taxation on interest income from Greek treasury bills and bonds. The goal is to reduce the gap between the interest rates on loans and deposits, he said.
