Jeroen Dijsselbloem: EU ministers 'losing patience' with Greece

Eurozone finance ministers are "losing patience" with Greece, Eurogroup president Jeroen Dijsselbloem told a Greek daily as the crisis-hit country prepared to unveil its next budget on Thursday.

"Many finance ministers of the eurozone are starting to lose patience," Dijsselbloem told Ta Nea daily after a lecture in The Hague on Wednesday.

A statement issued by the International Monetary Fund early on Thursday said that auditors from the IMF, the European Central Bank and the European Commission had concluded their latest visit to Greece to review progress on the country's economic programme.


Such audits determine whether or not Greece receives the next slice of rescue funding.

The IMF said that the discussions had been "productive" on the policies "that could serve as a basis" for completion of the review.

It said that "good progress has been made, but a few issues remain outstanding. Talks would continue from the headquarters of the three creditor bodies and the auditors would return to Athens "early in December," the statement said. On Thursday, Athens will unveil its 2014 budget, a blueprint expected to forecast slim growth in the Greek economy after six straight years of recession.

But the budget is likely to require revision soon as Greek officials have yet to agree with the country's creditors on how to close a looming fiscal gap next year.

The troika predicts the 2014 fiscal gap will exceed 1.5 billion euros ($2.0 billion), while the Greek government estimates the sum to be slightly more than 500 million euros.

Discussions are also stumbling on the issue of a new property tax, possible new pension cuts as well as layoffs in the state sector, and the slow pace of privatisation.

The EU-IMF fiscal audit, necessary to unblock a one-billion-euro ($1.4 billion) instalment of financial aid, is now expected to drag on until Christmas.

"Greece still has plenty of work to do," Dijsselbloem told Ta Nea, noting that the EU-IMF talks in Athens were focusing on Greece's "progress -- or rather, lack of progress -- on its commitments." 
 http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/eu-ministers-losing-patience-with-greece-eurogroup.aspx?pageID=238&nID=58286&NewsCatID=344
21/11/13
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(hurriyetdailynews.com READER COMMENTS)

ilker avni 11/21/2013 8:30:59 PM Greece has started to sell most of its institutions to china,it will have to sell a few more,as the greeks migrat like the africans looking for a better life,i hope they face the same discrimination that they have been dishing out to those poor economic migrants.

Red Tail 11/21/2013 8:08:56 PM Mike alexander. The fact is that greece LIED to enter the euro and have manipulated data for a long time. No one teusta a liar.

Peter Kypros 11/21/2013 5:58:17 PM During the last 3 months I visited China, India, Germany, Greece and England. I do not care what they say but Greece is far more beautiful and pleasant to be even with less money. Greece is not my country by the way. China highly polluted you cannot breath. Germany/England foggy and depressing the beer does not improve it either. India: felt bad for the people. A beautiful country with people with humor and high level of education and democracy will always survive and do well.

mike alexander 11/21/2013 5:52:41 PM Max Capybara and Red Tail. A 3rd party can easily see the complex the few Islamic Turks like you have against the Greeks. Just know my friend: The Greeks have 2 heavy duty Industries. Tourism and Shipping (The biggest in the World !). Now that they do not have the 25 BL deficit they do not need anyone to servive. And by the way, despite the economic problems Greece maintains double the Turkish GNP and is at least 100 Y ahead in infrastructure and human education my friends. Those are the facts !

Georgios Milopoulos 11/21/2013 3:29:01 PM The Greek people are not loosing but already lost their patience with the Eurogroup and its stupid policy.

Max Capybara 11/21/2013 2:30:46 PM Grexit on the way.. ..About the time.

Red Tail 11/21/2013 1:35:00 PM Perfectly understandable that the EU is getting tired of this. Itwill take a very long time until anyone dares to trust the Greek state again.