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The real problem in Greece is not cutting taxes, it's making sure that we don't have tax evasion.

George Papandreou

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George Papandreou
Age: 72
Born: 1952
Born: June 16
Diplomat
Former Prime Minister Of Greece
Politician
Sociologist
St Paul
Minnesota
George Andreas Papandreou
Taxes
Cutting
Sure
Making
Problem
Real
Evasion
Greece

More quotes by George Papandreou

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I have always said I will be in politics to serve as best as I can and it will take me wherever it will take me.
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The more there is a European solution to a theoretical, but possible, problem in the markets, the less we will have to talk about an I.M.F. solution.
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We had about 60 regions in Greece and now there are only 13. It'd be like cutting down 50 states to 13 and making it more efficient.
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There are certain moments in the history of a nation when the choices made define the decades to come.
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I never thought about becoming a politician. But during the military dictatorship, my grandfather was put in prison six times and my father twice. If my family and my country didn't have this history, I might be a professor somewhere today.
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Today I want to send a message of optismism to all Greeks. Our road, our path, will be more stabilised. Our country will be in a better situation. We will be stronger.
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Markets are saying pretty much what I'm saying too: that Greece is doing what it can, but that Greece is not going to be able to carry the weight of all of Europe and the other problems that Europe has.
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I would like to see Greece as a case study, an opportunity for Europe to strengthen its coordination of fiscal policy.
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If Greece had gone through a very normal political life, I may have not been in politics. But just the fact that I lived through huge upheavals and very difficult struggles and polarization and the barbarism of dictatorships - that made me feel that we had to change this country.
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How can a parliamentarian or a leader in a country say, on the one hand, that we're going to support Greece but at the same time say that Greeks are lazy?
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I think there is a heritage which I’m proud of, which is a fight for democracy, a fight for social justice, a fight for freedom. My grandfather went to jail or exile six times in his life, fighting for his principles for democracy, or for his country. And my father twice.
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We in Europe have great capacities.
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Greece has great strengths, but much of this potential has been wasted. That's because of a wider political system, but also because of a lack of an institutional framework.
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An elected government making huge changes with the consent of its people, is being undermined by concentrated powers in unregulated markets-powers which go beyond those of any individual government.
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But sovereign debt is a wider question not only in Europe but across the globe. While every country is a unique case, I think it's not an issue of countries acting on their own. We need a more coordinated strategy not only in Europe but around the world.
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If we were going to default, we would have decided that many months ago. It would be wrong for the Greek economy, it would be wrong for the European economy, it would make things worse in the end. That's why we're taking the pain and making these structural reforms, and we're on target.
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We stand united, facing the big responsibility to change our country into a nation of justice, solidarity, humanity and green development.
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Europe is a strong market for the U.S. If it has problems, if there's a lack of consumer confidence, if there's a deeper recession, this will deeply affect jobs in the U.S.
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Unfortunately, corruption is widespread in government agencies and public enterprises.
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I have been supporting the European Union, but we are still a work in progress. We have to become more of a United States of Europe. We should talk about electing a president of the E.U., rather than having one selected from the heads of government.
George Papandreou