Greek Prime Minister said in inaugural speech that he will not disclose spending

ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Greece’s prime minister said Saturday he would not let excessive spending derail the country’s recovery from a long financial crisis that has required an unprecedented injection of funds from creditors, an announcement made in a key speech at the country’s most prestigious trade event.

“I did not come with a bag full of gifts,” Kyriakos Mitsotakis told participants at the Thessaloniki International Fair.

Traditionally, during the fair, which takes place every September, heads of government present an outline of economic policy for the following year, boasting about their achievements.

The European Union’s new fiscal rules after the pandemic aim to keep spending increases secret and those who violate them will be fined, and Mitsotakis has promised to abide by them,

Mitsotakis announced increases in pensions and the minimum wage, as well as measures to boost exports, improve productivity, address the housing shortage, encourage young people to engage in agriculture and address the country’s low birth rate.

Several of the measures, such as a second round of low-interest mortgages for young families worth €2 billion ($2.2 billion), will be partly financed by the European Union.

Referring to the rise in tourism – criticised by some as excessive – Mitsotakis said short-term rentals should not be “demonised” but promised not to allow any new such services in central Athens for at least the next year.

He also announced higher disembarkation fees for cruise passengers, especially, he said, on the islands of Santorini and Mykonos, which attract tourists. As for Santorini, government officials said the current fee of 35 cents ($0.38) per passenger could rise to between 10 and 15 euros ($11 to $16.60).

Mitsotakis denied that his government — in power since 2019 — was suffering from reform fatigue and what he called the “curse of the second term.”

Although his conservative party saw its support fall by about a third in June’s European elections, at a low rate and record abstentions, it almost doubled the result of the second-place party, the left-wing Syriza, which also saw its support fall.

The Greek leader noted that the government has more than 1,000 days until the next national elections to implement its program and said his party is the only stabilizing force in Greek politics.

There is certainly not much of a challenge from the opposition, with the two largest parties, Syriza and the socialist PASOK, both engulfed in internal divisions. Syriza leader Stefanos Kasselakis faced a no-confidence motion at a meeting of the party’s central committee on Saturday. The Socialists are fighting their own leadership contest in early October against seven very different candidates.

As if to underscore the weakness of the opposition, the traditional, sometimes violent, protest marches – three of them, unionist, communist and far-leftist – were the least attended in years, perhaps ever, with just 7,500 people in attendance, according to local police. They ended without incident.

Thessaloniki, the country’s second-largest city, and its surrounding regions are strongholds of the far-right nationalist party, the main beneficiaries of the European elections. Three parties won more than 16% of the national vote and sent MEPs to the European Parliament.

Mitsotakis did not fail to highlight the projects his government had implemented in the region, noting that he had appointed the popular and populist governor of the Central Macedonia region as the next Greek EU commissioner.

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Costas Kantouris contributed from Thessaloniki.