Tsipras pledges lower property tax, VAT in post-bailout era

Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras announced on Saturday his plans to lower the value added tax (VAT) and the property levy ENFIA as of 2021 and 2019 respectively in a speech at the 2018 Thessaloniki International Fair, aimed at signalling a new era for Greece after the end of the third bailout.

"Greece today is a different country. A country that, after a clean exit from the memorandums, is standing on its feet again, relies on its own strengths and can look forward to the future with confidence," he told attendees.

"We are determined to fulfil the agreed [fiscal] targets in the coming years. We will not allow Greece to return to the era of deficits and fiscal derailment."

Presenting the government's political strategy for the next four years, he said it includes a reduction of the higher VAT from 24 pct to 22 pct and the lower from 13 pct to 12 pct, that will take...