Thessaloniki Program by Syriza Lyrics
SYRIZA
THE THESSALONIKI PROGRAMME
- Write-off the greater part of public debt’s nominal value so that it becomes sustainable in the context of a “European Debt Conference”.
- Include a “growth clause” in the repayment of the remaining part so that it is growth-financed and not budget-financed.
- Include a significant grace period “moratorium” in debt servicing to save funds for growth.
- Exclude public investment from the restrictions of the Stability and Growth Pact.
- A “European New Deal” of public investment financed by the European Investment Bank.
- Quantitative easing by the European Central Bank with direct purchases of sovereign bonds.
- Finally, we declare once again that the issue of the Nazi Occupation forced loan from the Bank of Greece is open for us. Our partners know it. It will become the country’s official position from our first days in power.
- Immediately increasing public investment by at least €4 billion.
- Gradually reversing all the Memorandum injustices.
- Gradually restoring salaries and pensions so as to increase consumption and demand.
- Providing small and medium-sized enterprises with incentives for employment, and subsidizing the energy cost of industry in exchange for an employment and environmental clause.
- Investing in knowledge, research, and new technology in order to have young scientists, who have been massively emigrating over the last years, back home.
- Rebuilding the welfare state, restoring the rule of law and creating a meritocratic state.
THE FOUR PILLARS OF THE NATIONAL RECONSTRUCTION PLAN
1st PILLAR: Confronting the humanitarian crisis
- Free electricity to 300,000 households currently under the poverty line. Total cost: €59,4 million.
- Programme of meal subsidies to 300,000 families without income. Total cost: €756 million.
- Programme of housing guarantee. The target is the provision of initially 30,000 apartments Total cost: €54 million.
- Restitution of the Christmas bonus, as 13th pension, to 1.262.920 pensioners with a pension up to €700. Total cost: €543,06 million.
- Free medical and pharmaceutical care for the uninsured unemployed. Total cost: €350 million.
- Special public transport card for the long-term unemployed and those who are under the poverty line. Total cost: €120 million.
- Repeal of the leveling of the special consumption tax on heating and automotive diesel.
2nd PILLAR: Restarting the economy and promoting tax justice
- The immediate cease of prosecution as well as of confiscation of bank accounts, primary residence, salaries, etc, and the issuance of tax clearance certificate to all those included in the settlement process.
- A twelve-month suspension of prosecution and enforcement measures against debtors with an established zero income, included in the settlement process.
- Repeal of the anti-constitutional treatment of outstanding financial obligations to the state as offence in the act (in flagrante delicto).
- Abolition of the mandatory 50% down payment of the outstanding debt as a prerequisite to seek a court hearing. The down payment will be decided by a judge. It will be around 10%-20%, according to the financial circumstances of the debtor.
- Immediate abolition of the current unified property tax (ENFIA). Introduction of a tax on large property. Immediate downward adjustment of property zone rates per m². Estimated cost: €2 billion.
- Restitution of the €12000 annual income tax threshold. Increase in the number of tax brackets to ensure progressive taxation. Estimated cost: €1.5 billion.
- Personal debt relief by restructuring non-performing loans ("red loans") by individuals and enterprises.
- We are setting up a public intermediary organization for the handling of private debt, not as a "bad bank", but both as manager of any payment overdue to the banks and as bank controller regarding the implementation of the agreed-upon settlements.
- In the next days, SYRIZA will table a law proposal to extend ad infinitum the suspension of foreclosures on primary residences, valued less than €300000.
- The law proposal will also include the prohibition to sell or transfer the rights over loans and over land charges to secure the loans to non-bank financial institutions or companies.
- Establishment of a public development bank as well as of special-purpose banks: Starting capital at €1 billion.
- Restoration of the minimum wage to €751.
3rd PILLAR: National plan to regain employment
- Restitution of the institutional framework to protect employment rights that was demolished by the Memoranda governments.
- Restitution of the so-called "after-effect" of collective agreements; of the collective agreements themselves as well as of arbitration.
- Abolition of all regulations allowing for massive and unjustifiable layoffs as well as for renting employees.
- Employment programme for 300,000 new jobs.
4th PILLAR: Transforming the political system to deepen democracy
- Regional organization of the state. Enhancement of transparency, of the economic autonomy and the effective operation of municipalities and regions. We empower the institutions of direct democracy and introduce new ones.
- Empowerment of citizens’ democratic participation. Introduction of new institutions, such as people’s legislative initiative, people’s veto and people’s initiative to call a referendum.
- Empowerment of the Parliament, curtailment of parliamentary immunity, and repeal of the peculiar legal regime of MPs’ non-prosecution.
- Regulation of the radio/television landscape by observing all legal preconditions and adhering to strict financial, tax, and social-security criteria. Re-establishment of ERT (Public Radio and Television) on a zero basis.
Estimating the cost of the non-negotiable plan of immediate measures to restructure society.
It will be fully covered as follows:
First of all, from the measures and procedures of settlement and clearance. We plan to collect, at a minimum, €20 billion out of a total of €68 billion in arrears over a seven-year period. That would add approximately €3 billion into the public coffers in the first year.
Secondly, by decisively combatting tax evasion and smuggling (e.g. fuel and cigarette smuggling), something that requires resolve and political will to clash with oligarchic interests.
Regarding the starting capital of the public intermediary organization and the cost of the establishment of a public development bank as well as of special-purpose banks, totaling €3 billion, we will finance it from the so-called "comfort pillow" of the, around, €11 billion of the Hellenic Financial Stability Fund intended for the banking system.
Regarding the total cost of the plan to regain employment: it amounts to €5 billion, €3 billion of which is the cost in the first implementation year. During that first year, the cost will be financed through: €1 billion from the National Strategic Reference Framework 2007-2013 "bridge projects"; €1,5 billion from its 2014-2020 equivalent, and €500 million from other specialized European instruments for employment.
In addition, considering the huge effort that will be required to restore pensions, our government, instead of selling-out public property, it will transfer a part of it to social security funds.
That is the minimum of measures to be taken in order to reverse the catastrophic consequences of the Private Sector Involvement (PSI) on the pension funds and individual bondholders and gradually restore pensions.
ESTIMATED TOTAL COST OF THE «THESSALONIKI PROGRAMME»: €11,382 billion
ESTIMATED TOTAL REVENUES: €12 billion
THE THESSALONIKI PROGRAMME
- Write-off the greater part of public debt’s nominal value so that it becomes sustainable in the context of a “European Debt Conference”.
- Include a “growth clause” in the repayment of the remaining part so that it is growth-financed and not budget-financed.
- Include a significant grace period “moratorium” in debt servicing to save funds for growth.
- Exclude public investment from the restrictions of the Stability and Growth Pact.
- A “European New Deal” of public investment financed by the European Investment Bank.
- Quantitative easing by the European Central Bank with direct purchases of sovereign bonds.
- Finally, we declare once again that the issue of the Nazi Occupation forced loan from the Bank of Greece is open for us. Our partners know it. It will become the country’s official position from our first days in power.
- Immediately increasing public investment by at least €4 billion.
- Gradually reversing all the Memorandum injustices.
- Gradually restoring salaries and pensions so as to increase consumption and demand.
- Providing small and medium-sized enterprises with incentives for employment, and subsidizing the energy cost of industry in exchange for an employment and environmental clause.
- Investing in knowledge, research, and new technology in order to have young scientists, who have been massively emigrating over the last years, back home.
- Rebuilding the welfare state, restoring the rule of law and creating a meritocratic state.
THE FOUR PILLARS OF THE NATIONAL RECONSTRUCTION PLAN
1st PILLAR: Confronting the humanitarian crisis
- Free electricity to 300,000 households currently under the poverty line. Total cost: €59,4 million.
- Programme of meal subsidies to 300,000 families without income. Total cost: €756 million.
- Programme of housing guarantee. The target is the provision of initially 30,000 apartments Total cost: €54 million.
- Restitution of the Christmas bonus, as 13th pension, to 1.262.920 pensioners with a pension up to €700. Total cost: €543,06 million.
- Free medical and pharmaceutical care for the uninsured unemployed. Total cost: €350 million.
- Special public transport card for the long-term unemployed and those who are under the poverty line. Total cost: €120 million.
- Repeal of the leveling of the special consumption tax on heating and automotive diesel.
2nd PILLAR: Restarting the economy and promoting tax justice
- The immediate cease of prosecution as well as of confiscation of bank accounts, primary residence, salaries, etc, and the issuance of tax clearance certificate to all those included in the settlement process.
- A twelve-month suspension of prosecution and enforcement measures against debtors with an established zero income, included in the settlement process.
- Repeal of the anti-constitutional treatment of outstanding financial obligations to the state as offence in the act (in flagrante delicto).
- Abolition of the mandatory 50% down payment of the outstanding debt as a prerequisite to seek a court hearing. The down payment will be decided by a judge. It will be around 10%-20%, according to the financial circumstances of the debtor.
- Immediate abolition of the current unified property tax (ENFIA). Introduction of a tax on large property. Immediate downward adjustment of property zone rates per m². Estimated cost: €2 billion.
- Restitution of the €12000 annual income tax threshold. Increase in the number of tax brackets to ensure progressive taxation. Estimated cost: €1.5 billion.
- Personal debt relief by restructuring non-performing loans ("red loans") by individuals and enterprises.
- We are setting up a public intermediary organization for the handling of private debt, not as a "bad bank", but both as manager of any payment overdue to the banks and as bank controller regarding the implementation of the agreed-upon settlements.
- In the next days, SYRIZA will table a law proposal to extend ad infinitum the suspension of foreclosures on primary residences, valued less than €300000.
- The law proposal will also include the prohibition to sell or transfer the rights over loans and over land charges to secure the loans to non-bank financial institutions or companies.
- Establishment of a public development bank as well as of special-purpose banks: Starting capital at €1 billion.
- Restoration of the minimum wage to €751.
3rd PILLAR: National plan to regain employment
- Restitution of the institutional framework to protect employment rights that was demolished by the Memoranda governments.
- Restitution of the so-called "after-effect" of collective agreements; of the collective agreements themselves as well as of arbitration.
- Abolition of all regulations allowing for massive and unjustifiable layoffs as well as for renting employees.
- Employment programme for 300,000 new jobs.
4th PILLAR: Transforming the political system to deepen democracy
- Regional organization of the state. Enhancement of transparency, of the economic autonomy and the effective operation of municipalities and regions. We empower the institutions of direct democracy and introduce new ones.
- Empowerment of citizens’ democratic participation. Introduction of new institutions, such as people’s legislative initiative, people’s veto and people’s initiative to call a referendum.
- Empowerment of the Parliament, curtailment of parliamentary immunity, and repeal of the peculiar legal regime of MPs’ non-prosecution.
- Regulation of the radio/television landscape by observing all legal preconditions and adhering to strict financial, tax, and social-security criteria. Re-establishment of ERT (Public Radio and Television) on a zero basis.
Estimating the cost of the non-negotiable plan of immediate measures to restructure society.
It will be fully covered as follows:
First of all, from the measures and procedures of settlement and clearance. We plan to collect, at a minimum, €20 billion out of a total of €68 billion in arrears over a seven-year period. That would add approximately €3 billion into the public coffers in the first year.
Secondly, by decisively combatting tax evasion and smuggling (e.g. fuel and cigarette smuggling), something that requires resolve and political will to clash with oligarchic interests.
Regarding the starting capital of the public intermediary organization and the cost of the establishment of a public development bank as well as of special-purpose banks, totaling €3 billion, we will finance it from the so-called "comfort pillow" of the, around, €11 billion of the Hellenic Financial Stability Fund intended for the banking system.
Regarding the total cost of the plan to regain employment: it amounts to €5 billion, €3 billion of which is the cost in the first implementation year. During that first year, the cost will be financed through: €1 billion from the National Strategic Reference Framework 2007-2013 "bridge projects"; €1,5 billion from its 2014-2020 equivalent, and €500 million from other specialized European instruments for employment.
In addition, considering the huge effort that will be required to restore pensions, our government, instead of selling-out public property, it will transfer a part of it to social security funds.
That is the minimum of measures to be taken in order to reverse the catastrophic consequences of the Private Sector Involvement (PSI) on the pension funds and individual bondholders and gradually restore pensions.
ESTIMATED TOTAL COST OF THE «THESSALONIKI PROGRAMME»: €11,382 billion
ESTIMATED TOTAL REVENUES: €12 billion