Speaking to Greek state broadcaster ERT, Finance Minister Euclid Tsakalotos said that the capital controls were at state were they were gradually receding. He added, however, that he was unable to pinpoint the exact time when they would be completely lifted. ‘For them (capital controls) to be lifted the money would have to return to the Greek banks’, he underlined.

On the matter of taxes, Tsakalotos revealed the government was preparing 3 new draft bills focusing on battling tax evasion and voluntary hiding of capital, adding that only if state revenues were up could there be any alleviation of tax burdens on citizens. ‘Even then, the tax deductions will not be substantial, because state needs would have to be covered first’, he clarified.

Commenting on the issue of widespread privatisations, he rejected they were on mass scale, saying that only the transfer of state owned assets to the Republic Assets Development Fund would take place. like the public water company and the PPC. He agreed that the Greek banks had taken a hard hit, as they had been discredited, but blamed the institutions who had insisted they needed 25bln Euros for recapitalisation. Tsakalotos agreed the cost of the negotiation for the Greek state with its creditors was far less than 100bln Euros, pointing out that the ESM 86bln Euros was a recycling of older debts.