Greeks Beware Germans Baring Teeth

There was an old Roman saying stating that we should "Beware Greeks bearing gifts". Well from the Greek perspective that saying has been reversed, and its they who have cause to beware friends offering help.

The EU and IMF have finally come up with a rescue package for the Greek economy, which finally collapsed, after a decade of spending money it doesn't have. However the price of this money isn't cheap, and the Greeks will be expected to make major austerity cuts. According to the various reports the Greeks:

• Are tax dodging on a massive scale and estimated as about €22bn pa (about half of the annual deficit).
• Retiring at 53
• Getting 'allowances' which include simply being an unmarried daughter of deceased parents, in the public sector - estimated annual costs €550 Million for this alone.

In the public sector pay allowances are given for - knowing how to operate a computer - knowing a foreign language - punctuality - working on the open air for the working in the forestry workers .... you get the idea.

Now in all fairness, no Greek likes the system of low pay topped up by 'allowances', which were brought in to give pay rises without adding to the pension bill, which was already blown. However if they are cut, forget it, you will have almost all the civil servants unable to live and simply ceasing to turn into work, as these 'allowances' can make up as much as 70% of total pay in some cases. So whether the Greeks can actually impose these cuts is extremely doubtful.

When I was in Italy a couple of years ago there was a mention of the fact that the EU had given Italy billions to rehouse people after an earthquake, but a decade later they were still in 'temporary' housing and the billions had simply disappeared. There must be great fears the this money loaned to the Greeks will simply 'disappear' in much the same manner as the Italian funds.

As an example of the scale of the problems in Greece. In the wealthy suburbs of Athens only 324 tax returns show ownership of a pool, satellite photos show 16,974 pools, one of many indicators of tax evasion.

In the UK we actually face very similar problems, but not one of the parties is prepared to spell out the bill we face, so just hold your breath until Thursday, when we will find out how much pain the Labour Party has gathered for us all in the last 13 yrs.

As Margaret Thatcher said "The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people's money".