Brussels
rejects Yanis Varoufakis' claims that troika controlled Greek tax
system
Allegations
of covert scheme described as ‘simply not true’ by European
commission as Alexis Tsipras looks to conclude third bailout deal
with creditors
Yanis Varoufakis
Helena Smith in
Athens
Tuesday 28 July 2015
20.42 BST /
http://www.theguardian.com/business/2015/jul/28/greek-crisis-brussels-rejects-yanis-varoufakist-claims-troika
The European
commission has denounced as “false and unfounded” claims by
Greece’s former finance minister Yanis Varoufakis that
international creditors had exclusive control over the country’s
tax system.
Brussels slammed the
suggestion that external supervision of the Greek tax revenue agency
forced Varoufakis to consider hacking the ministry’s computers as
part of a secret plan to devise a parallel payment system for the
nation.
“On what Mr
Varoufakis has been saying, the allegations that the troika was
controlling the secretariat general of public revenues are false and
unfounded,” said Mina Andreeva, a spokeswoman for the European
commission, referring to the triumvirate of lenders propping up the
near bankrupt Greek economy. “The secretariat general of public
revenue is a quasi-independent entity, responsible for tax
administration, that is formally part of the Ministry of Finance.”
While creditors at
the European commission, European Central Bank and International
Monetary Fund provided the tax system with technical assistance, it
was “simply not true” that lenders controlled it, she added.
The denunciation
added a new twist to revelations that have shaken Greece after it
emerged that Varoufakis, who resigned this month, had drawn up
contingency plans outlining an alternative monetary system in the
event of Athens being ejected from the eurozone.
To create the
parallel system – one that would allow the debt-stricken country to
leave the euro “at a drop of a hat” – Varoufakis admitted that
he had to hack his own ministry’s computer system to access
individual tax codes controlled “fully and directly by the troika.”
The confession was
made during a private conference call with investors that was
subsequently revealed in the Greek media.
“It was not under
control of my ministry,” Varoufakis was quoted as saying. “It was
controlled by Brussels. The general secretariat is appointed,
effectively, through a process that is troika-controlled and the
whole mechanism within.”
The revelation of
the covert scheme has added weight to speculation that prime minister
Alexis Tsipras’s leftwing government had planned to drop the euro
even as it conducted fraught negotiations over further financial
assistance with creditors. Government insiders have refused to be
drawn on the former finance minister’s claims.
On Tuesday, the
Greek media quoted prime ministerial aides as saying they had “tired”
of Varoufakis. The prime minister, who turned 41 this week, is keen
to conclude a third bailout with the EU and IMF that would unlock as
much as €86bn (£61bn) in fresh loans to keep the country afloat.
Varoufakis is
opposed to the stringent spending cuts and tax increases Athens has
to agree to in exchange for the aid. With Greek banks operating under
capital controls and the international standing of Athens damaged
after months of acrimonious talks with creditors, largely overseen by
Varoufakis, calls are also growing for the academic-turned-politician
to be tried for high treason.
On Tuesday night,
supreme court prosecutor Efterpi Koutzamani forwarded two suits filed
against Varoufakis by private individuals to parliament – a move
that could see the 300-seat House lifting his political immunity, the
first step towards him standing trial.
The revelations
overshadowed the start of an inspection tour in Athens by technical
teams representing foreign lenders. Mission heads with the EU and IMF
arrive in Athens on Wednesday and are expected to be greeted with
draconian security as they try to gauge the parlous state of the
Greek economy.
Athens urgently
needs emergency funds to avert defaulting on 20 August when it must
meet a €3.4bn bond repayment to the ECB. Although capital controls
are not expected to be lifted for several months, there were reports
on Tuesday suggesting that the Athens stock exchange, which like
banks had also been closed, would reopen later in the week. Lenders
opened their doors 10 days ago after a three-week shutdown.
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