The full set of the new support measures
The debate on the 2023 state budget began in the Parliament’s plenary session on Tuesday, with the timetable providing for the vote to take place late on Saturday, after five full days of discussion.
The budget provides for 850 million euros of support measures, which also cover the rest of this month, and will be introduced in a highly charged year in political terms, given there will be at least one election.
In detail, the support measures, starting from December, include:
• The inflation handout of €250 that 2.3 million beneficiaries will receive in December, costing €500 million.
• The subsidy to farmers for fertilizers, costing €60 million.
• The heating allowance paid to 1.2 million beneficiaries, in December (€150 million) and in two other installments next year (€300 million in total).
• Subsidizing heating oil at 25 cents per liter, costing €60-70 million per month. The measure, for now, is only valid for December, but it may be extended in the following months.
• The extraordinary Christmas gift of €600 euros to police and port police officers costing €37 million.
• The 10% increases in the salaries of 19,900 state doctors, at a cost of €65 million a year, while the retroactive payments this month burden the budget with €25 million.
• The arrangement of armed forces salary issues, including night work, costing €25 million euros.
• The extension to the private sector of maternity support measures, including the relevant allowance, costing €64 million per year.
• The “Save-Renovate” program for young people, as part of the wider “My Home” social housing program, which will allocate €375 million in loans and €350 million in grants.
• The 7.75% increase in pensions, which will cost €909 million.
• The harmonization of the rate for receiving a disability pension, costing €60 million per year.
• The abolition of the special contribution of 1% in favor of the Public Employees’ Welfare Fund as of January, costing €50 million.
• The abolition of the solidarity levy for civil servants and pensioners, with incomes over €12,000, in line with the private sector, entailing an additional cost of €500 million.
• The new minimum wage rise, to burden the budget through unemployment benefits.
