The government enters a new phase of political negotiations with Greece’s lenders with an agenda that focuses on the increase of installments to the tax office and insurance funds, on tax breaks and on the regulation of the so-called ‘red’ loans.

Greek finance minister Gikas Hardouvelis, who is chiefly responsible for the preparation, has already warned his associates that a tough battle awaits them in August.

The aim of Prime Minister Antonis Samaras and Mr Hardouvelis is to have everything ready by September so that the Maximos Mansion will be able to impose its own agenda regarding the election of the President of the Republic, providing it gathers the required number of votes from the parliament.

In this context, Mr. Hardouvelis will record daily the progress in all the other ministries and will have continuous contacts with the other ministers to prevent them from falling behind.

The Finance Minister told Thema newspaper that he is determined to “provide a safety net for poor households, but many businesses that are not viable will have to close.”