Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis delivered a clear message to his ministers during the opening remarks of today’s cabinet meeting: not a single euro should be lost from the resources Greece has secured through the EU Recovery and Resilience Fund.

“While many are approaching a brief summer break, our pace doesn’t always follow the season. We are now at the start of the second half of our term. We will focus on 25 priorities, which form the core of our work from now until the end of the year. Each ministry has one or two major priorities. It’s easy to fall into the trap of merely managing day-to-day issues, but it’s essential that we have outlined a broader roadmap with a clear timeline for completion by year-end,” the Prime Minister emphasized in his opening statement.

He added, “It is very important at the cabinet level to have a defined roadmap with specific goals and a clear outlook, aiming for implementation by the end of this year.”

Mitsotakis made special reference to the Ministry of Finance, which is preparing key announcements for the upcoming Thessaloniki International Fair (TIF), including new relief measures for the middle class. He also stressed the importance of intensifying efforts to tackle tax evasion using new digital tools.

The Prime Minister also gave special mention to the Ministry of Development, which is launching what he called a significant initiative involving multiple ministries. The aim is to reduce bureaucracy for businesses by 25% and to strengthen market oversight through a unified supervisory authority.

“The goal is to make the state increasingly more effective,” Mitsotakis concluded.

The cabinet meeting under Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis is currently underway, which is the last one before the short summer break.

Ministers are expected to get their hands on the priorities for the second half of 2025 today. They are the new, short version of the “blue envelopes” and will be presented by Deputy Prime Minister Kostis Hatzidakis and State Minister Akis Skertsos. Each minister will possibly also receive on one page the codified priorities of his or her portfolio, which will be overseen by the government presidency and Mitsotakis himself. This model was first implemented at the cabinet meeting following the mid-March reshuffle.

Watch live Kyriakos Mitsotakis’ statement to the cabinet:

Of course, the bill presented by Interior Minister Theodoros Livanios on the new Local Government Code, which includes a change in the electoral system, will also be of interest. Despite the opposition even of “blue” mayors, the Minister of Interior is promoting the important reform of the electoral system, with the abolition of the second round of elections for municipalities and regions. The bar for direct election will be set at just over 42%, and citizens will be able to choose a second choice of combination on the ballot paper. If no winner emerges because the 42% threshold is not reached, then the “second choice” crosses received by combinations in third place and below will be added to the top two.