Greek PM Mitsotakis: Measures against youth internet addiction on December 30

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, in an interview with ERT on Tuesday evening, referred, among other things, to the problem of youth addiction to social media. He stressed that on December 30, the government will present its comprehensive plan and said that in order to tackle the issue “we need parents as allies.” He underlined that he had spoken on the issue at the UN General Assembly.

Mitsotakis said the government’s measures stipulate that the age of digital adulthood will be 15 years. He stressed that there is a great sensitivity of the majority of the public opinion and noted that the ban on mobile phones in schools was the first step to address the problem.

Referring to the measures announced on bank charges and the opposition’s criticism, Mitsotakis said that in the state budget he sent a message of certainty and stability in an uncertain world.

Asked whether in 2025 there will be relief for the middle class in direct taxation, Mitsotakis said any intervention should be accompanied by equivalent measures or spending restraint.

Mitsotakis said he was confident in the growth potential of the Greek economy and stressed that Greece would continue to diverge upwards. He also said he was pushing for faster implementation of the Draghi report’s proposals to improve European competitiveness.

On his visit to Lebanon, he noted that Greece has good relations with all Middle Eastern states and that it is a de facto interlocutor with all of them. He stressed that in Lebanon and Syria there is an important Greek Orthodox community. “We are interested in discussing the safeguarding of Syria’s territorial sovereignty and the protection of religious minorities,” he said.

On Greek-American relations, he said they are at their best level ever and estimated that they will continue to be so. “She is a person close to the Trump environment, and that is good,” he said of the new ambassador, noting that whoever came would serve the good level in relations between the two countries.

Asked about the election of the new president of the Hellenic Republic, he said he would come back to the issue in the new year, respecting the institutional role of the president. “I will announce my decisions at the appropriate time,” he noted, specifying that important deadlines foresee it for the second half of January.

On the constitutional revision, he said that he will start this discussion in the second half of 2025.

Source: AMNA