Europe needs a new model of economic development that will be “fairer, more social and more participatory”, Finance Minister Euclid Tsakalotos said during a keynote speech at an event organized by the European Investment Bank (EIB) in Luxembourg on Wednesday.
“The Greek government’s aim is for Greece to return to growth but to a sustainable growth,” Tsakalotos said, adding that to achieve this, there must be a fairer distribution of profits to employees and to the periphery, but also a more democratic control of political decisions.
The minister started his speech by criticizing the eurozone’s mode of operation, saying that even with the European Central Bank’s (ECB) loose monetary policy it is mostly the northern European countries that benefit and not the southern that needed it most.
In the same way, he said, to achieve a balanced recovery a country needs investments which will support mainly small and medium-sized businesses which are currently having a difficult time accessing funding from commercial banks.
“EIB’s role in this is paramount,” he noted and hailed the recent decision by European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker to boost the funds available through the Juncker package.
He also clarified that for Greece to attract investments, it needs a deal of its debt as soon as possible. “Investors are waiting for political decisions. If these come in five years, they will invest in five years,” he said.