"I insist we have to be clear about the goal, the goal is growth."
Would he care to explain to the people of Greece how their country will grow over the next few years, on the basis of the austerity programme that has been forced down their throats by the Troika?
He went on to say:
"national budgetary decisions are the responsibility of national parliaments and will remain so.."
Not in Greece they're not!
"..growth-boosting reforms are still lagging behind. I mean this in areas such as tax reform, pension reform, labour market reform and opening up the services and retail sectors.
Of course the picture is mixed across the Union, but these are the areas the Commission and Council will focus on in the Country-Specific Recommendations.
I know these reforms can be difficult and sensitive."
Quite!
By the way, the title of his speech was "Unity in difference, strength in convergence"; clearly derived from Orwell's "1984" "Freedom is Slavery, War is Peace" etc!
