The Greek economy is doing badly
In short, the Greek economy is doing badly. On the one hand, this is due to the consequences of the financial crisis, which Greece is still feeling, but also to the austerity policy that has been imposed on the country. Many people are afraid of becoming poor or they are already poor.
The Greek state takes too little money and spends too much. This is a problem that has not been around for a short time, but has not yet been resolved. Greece is a member of the EU, but has, as some claim, sneaked its accession. They presented wrong numbers and made the state richer than it really was. In the end, Greece was accepted into the EU under the wrong conditions.
The consequences can still be felt today. The European Union has repeatedly supported Greece with loans, that is, borrowed money. So Greece has been saved from complete insolvency. But the state finances are still not doing well. While some say that the European Union should not give Greece any more money and that the country should leave, others do not find the strict austerity measures that have been imposed on Greece meaningful. They say that will only make the crisis worse. As you can see, economists and politicians alike can take the opposite view. So far nobody has found the solution to this crisis.
Rich people often don’t pay taxes at all
Economic experts and politicians argue in Greece, but also in the European Union. However, there is agreement on the point that Greece needs further reforms in order to get back on its feet economically. For some, however, the reforms are far too much, for others far too little.
According to philosophynearby, corruption and tax evasion are also major problems for Greece. Many rich Greeks go abroad and pay little or no taxes. No Greek government has yet succeeded in holding these people accountable. If these people were to pay their taxes in the country, Greece would have a lot less problems, at least that’s what smart people have calculated.
Self-employed
In Greece, 50 out of 100 people are self-employed. So you don’t have an employer, you are responsible for yourself. For a long time it was almost a kind of national sport in Greece to pay as little or no taxes as possible. People who paid taxes were thought to be stupid. This attitude would have to change, because it prevails not only among people who earn little money, but above all among high earners, such as shipowners. Although these earn a lot of money, they often pay little or no tax. This led to the poor economic situation in Greece.
Olives alone are not enough
Meanwhile, attempts are being made to strengthen Greece’s exports. There is a lot of precious metal in the country, such as silver, that can be mined. The problem here is that the promotion would destroy the environment, so that many are resisting it. But some only see the additional jobs that the silver and copper mines would create. There is no agreement here either.
What else is exported from Greece? The most important export goods are olives, textiles, olive oil, fruit, tomatoes, products made from petroleum and cement.
Depending on tourism
Tourism is of great importance for Greece. If there are no tourists, the Greek economy will be worse off. And especially in times of crisis, tourists like to look for other holiday destinations. But many jobs are directly or indirectly linked to tourism. However, the numbers have been rising again since 2013. In 2012, 15 million tourists came to Greece, in 2015 there were 23 million.
