With time counting down to the Prime Minister’s ascent to the TIF and the unveiling of the support package for society, with a focus on the middle class, the government is investing in a positive news strategy with a special focus on the everyday life of the citizen.

The government understands that the high cost of living, which is gnawing away at income growth, is a key area of concern for citizens and seeks to provide answers in this area. They are also seeking to correct the ruling party’s polling picture as measured in rolling surveys completed these days, which remains largely unchanged from before the summer recess.

It was therefore no coincidence that the Prime Minister’s warning in his Sunday post, addressed to energy providers, to hold back on retail prices in the new tariffs they will announce, given the clear deceleration in wholesale prices, was a warning. That’s because DEP, which is a “leading indicator” for the market, has made a 14.8% cut in its green tariff for September, passing on the significant drop in wholesale prices. Other providers are expected to move in a similar vein, giving households and businesses a breather.

Another area of concern is supermarkets, whose prices have been a constant topic of discussion at summer parties and a source of complaints to government officials and MPs. Already, Development Minister Takis Theodoricakos has entered into a “gentlemen’s agreement” with supermarket representatives to keep the prices of school supplies on their shelves stable.

A similar intervention is being prepared by the Department of Development in the next few months against the backdrop of about 1,000 popular product codes, in a bid to stop prices rising further. At the same time, the Market Surveillance Authority, which is being equipped with 300 inspectors and will operate along the lines of the ADC, will soon be on the road in an effort to intensify checks for overpricing and misleading offers.

However, the positive news that Mitsotakis is seeking to promote, while citizens are also returning to their obligations, is across the board. That’s why he met yesterday with the Hellenic Bankers Association, agreeing to a new 300 million euro grant over three years (100 euros a year), which boosts the momentum of the school building renovation program “Marietta Giannakou”, which will now have a total budget of €650 million, while the first cycle of substantial renovation and upgrading projects, involving 431 school units, will be completed before the start of the next school year.

This afternoon, Mitsotakis is expected to be at the port of Piraeus, along with the Minister of Shipping, Vassilis Kikilias, for the delivery of five new vessels that will be integrated into the Coast Guard force.