Former finance minister Yanis Varoufakis publicised the fees that he receives for giving lectures around the world on the website, The Press Project, after Proto Thema’s reportage concerning his hefty fees for speeches around the world in order to cancel out his own statements that he wasn’t making money out of them. In his recent statement on October 28, he states that the goal of his lectures are to “transfer the spirit of Athens Spring to the heart of Europe”. As a result, he has had to take part in endless travel with more than twenty appearances in different EU cities in just a couple of months. Refering to Proto Thema as a “troika-friendly media” outlet for vilifying his latest ludicrously priced endeavours, he thanked the newspaper for offering him the opportunity to publicize the cost of his lectures that he had previously claimed were free.
The catalogue that Varoufakis himself released on The Press Project has prompted reaction in Italy. Corriere Della Sera and La Stampa state that he recieved 1,000 euros per minute for an interview with Italian TV RAI for which he received 24,000 euros. It should be noted that he did not receive any money for his BBC interview.
In his own words:
List A refers to political speeches I gave (or plan to give) since my resignation from the Greek Ministry of Finance. My fee for delivering the bulk of these speeches was the radical number ‘zero’. In three cases I received a small sum (mainly because the organisers insisted I should).
List B comprises two speeches/appearances which I delivered commercially to maintain my economic independent from vested interests and to my other activities. (Note that this ratio of about 12 to 1, unpaid to paid, appearances was also my practice as an academic prior to 2014, when I decided to throw my hat in the ring of politics).
I conclude with a message to the troika-loyal media, in Greece and at large: Your continued efforts to vilify me constitute a great gift for which I am thankful to you. They confirm the extent to which you are still threatened by the Athens Spring and that your loathing of the hope it spread around the world is undying. At the same time, your grimy efforts contribute to us, your opponents, excellent ideas on how to promote the task ofTransparency Everywhere!
So, to conclude, from today and ad infinitum, let’s demand of ourselves and of others:Transparency Everywhere!
LIST A – Political Speeches, given and planned since August 2015
23 Aug. 2015 – Open air political speech at a rally in Frangy (France). Topic: “What does the Athens Spring mean for France and for Europe” – along with former French Economy Minister Arnaud Montebourg. http://yanisvaroufakis.eu/2015/08/25/10081/
Fee: 0 Travel expenses: Yes (Economy)
4 Sept. 2015 – Day long debates and meetings concerning the prospects of the European and Greek economies, organized by OMFIF, London
Fee: 0 Travel expenses: Yes (Economy)
5 Sept. 2015 – Speech in the House of Ambrosseti, Lake Como, along with French Economy Minister Emmanuel Macron, invited by former Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti http://yanisvaroufakis.eu/2015/09/07/on-the-state-of-the-european-union-address-at-the-41st-forum-of-the-european-house-ambrosetti/
Fee: 0 Travel expenses: Yes (Economy)
12 Sept. 2015 – Address at the “Festival of Humanity” (Festival de l’humanité), in Paris. Topic: “The Solution Must Be European” http://yanisvaroufakis.eu/2015/09/10/fassina-lafontaine-melenchon-varoufakis-this-saturday-in-paris/
Fee: 0 Travel expenses: Yes (Economy)
13 Sept. 2015 – Back-to-back speeches with Britain’s Shadow Chancellor John MacDonnell, Brighton UK. Topic: “Austerity was never an option” http://yanisvaroufakis.eu/2015/09/16/back-to-bak-speeches-by-y-varoufakis-j-mcdonald-audio/
Fee: 0 Travel expenses: Yes (Economy)
14 Sept. 2015 (morning) – Address of striking staff at London’s National Gallery http://yanisvaroufakis.eu/2015/09/19/addressing-the-striking-staff-of-londons-national-gallery-14th-sep-2015/
Fee: 0 Travel expenses: No
14 Sept. 2015 (evening) – Public address at the Emmanuel Centre, in London, UK. Topic: “Fighting for Our Future” (with Labour Party parliamentarian and Shadow Cabinet Minister Diane Abbot) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W_Gd3bluAHo
Fee: 0 Travel expenses: No
24 Sept. 2015 – Panelist on top BBC tv political debate’s program “Question Time” (Cambridge, UK) http://yanisvaroufakis.eu/2015/09/24/tonight-on-bbc-ones-question-time/
Fee: 0 Travel expenses: Yes (Economy)
26 Sept. 2015 – Public debate with Daniel Cohn Bedit at the Festival of Le Monde, Paris
Fee: 0 Travel expenses: Yes (Economy)
1 Oct. 2015 – Closing Speech at the 6th Moscow Biennale. Topic: “Artists Should Be Feared by the Powerful”, Moscow, Russia http://yanisvaroufakis.eu/2015/10/04/artists-should-be-feared-by-the-powerful-keynote-closing-the-6th-moscow-biennale-1st-october-2015/
Fee: €1000, Travel expenses: Yes (Economy)
6 Oct. 2015 – Public address at the Volksbühne Theater, Berlin, Germany. Topic: An Alternative Plan for Europe”
Fee: €500 Travel expenses: Yes (Economy)
15 Oct. 2015 – Talk at the Bon Centre, Municipality of Barcelona, invited by Mayor Ada Colau
Fee: €1700 Travel expenses: Yes (Economy)
17 Oct. 2015 – Inaugural Lecture of the Centre for Social Studies, University of Coimbra (Portugal)
Fee: 0 Travel expenses: Yes (Economy)
23 Oct. 2015 Open public address at the Central Westminster Hall, London, UK – organized by THE GUARDIAN newspaper
Fee: 0 Travel expenses: Yes (Economy)
24 Oct. 2015 Address at the Oxford Union, the University of Oxford, Oxford Union
Fee: 0 Travel expenses: No
25 Oct. 2015 – Public debate with Lord Howard, How To Academy, London
Fee: 0 Travel expenses: No
26 Oct. 2015 Address at an inter-collegiate meeting hosted by the Master of Trinity College, Cambridge
Fee: 0 Travel expenses: No
27 Oct. 2015 Public debate in Munich with German economist Professor Hans Werner Sinn
Fee: 0 Travel expenses: Yes (Economy)
3 Nov. 2015 Keynote speaker at a Summit with international banking sector representatives organised by Financial Times and hosted by the FT’s economics editor Mr Martin Wolf
Fee: 0 Travel expenses: Yes (Economy)
4 Nov. 2015 Public Lecture, University of Vienna University (co-organisation with Kreisky Forum)
Fee: 0 Travel expenses: Yes (Economy)
5 Nov. 2015 Opening event at the Kilkenomics Festival, Ireland
Fee: 0 Travel expenses: Yes (Economy)
6 Nov. 2015 Public Lecture University of Bocconi, Milano, Italy
Fee: 0 Travel expenses: No
16 Nov. 2015 Public Debate on the Future of Europe, with Professor Slavoj Zizek, Royal Festival Hall, London, UK
Fee: 0 Travel expenses: Yes (Economy)
LIST B – Commercial Speeches/Apperances, given and planned since August 2015
27 Sep. 2015 – Participation in tv program Che Tempo Che Fa, RAI 3,
Fee: €24,000 after Italian tax and social security contributions Travel expenses: Yes (First Class)
21 Oct 2015 – Presentation in the context of the Abraaj annual conference in Singapore
Fee: €28,800 after Greek tax
Travel expenses: Yes (Business Class)
