Manos Konsolas, President of the Parliamentary Committee of Regions and MP of the Dodecanese, called for the full implementation of the island and mountain clause in the decisions of Ministries and public administration that affect the lives of citizens living in islands and mountainous areas, during his speech on the State Budget.
He emphasized the priority of applying the Island Clause along with a series of targeted tax and development incentives for island regions, noting that:
“The high transportation cost applies to all of insular Greece, as does the issue of business competitiveness on the islands.”
Konsolas highlighted that the government is shaping a national strategy with 50 Local Development Plans for islands and mountainous regions. Additionally, a Governmental Committee for Insularity will be created to oversee and coordinate all policies and funding instruments related to island Greece, covering transport, health, energy security, and tourism. A Secretariat for Mountainous Regions is also being established.
He also congratulated Kyriakos Pierrakakis on his election as President of the Eurogroup, calling it a national success and the culmination of the sustained efforts by the Prime Minister and the New Democracy governments to restore Greeces credibility and return the country to growth and fiscal stability.
Regarding the budget, Konsolas underlined:
- Implementation of a massive public investment program totaling 16.7 billion, the largest in Greeces history.
- Stable growth rates of 2.6% projected for 2026.
- Reduction of unemployment to 8.6%, the lowest in 17 years.
- Reduction of tax rates by two percentage points.
- Gradual elimination of the personal difference for pensioners.
- Increase in public health spending to 8.2 billion, compared to 4.1 billion in 2019.
