Govt, opposition tit-for-tat over budget deficit, surplus figures

Responding to criticism by Alternate Finance Minister Dimitris Mardas, the man he succeeded in the post, Christos Staikouras, presented a summary of the fiscal achievements, as he claimed, belonged to the previous government.

Conservative MP Staikouras said Greece posted a primary deficit of six billion euros (2.9% of GDP) in 2011 and that in 2014 closed with a primary budget surplus of 2.9 bln euros (1.6%).

Based on these figures, the previous government managed to improve the annual primary balance by approximately 9 bln euros (roughly 4.5% of GDP), while the country achieved a “significant and nationally needed primary surplus” for two years in a row.