Greek elections 2009

New Socialist PM Papandreou to be sworn in

Article published on the 2009-10-06 Latest update 2009-10-06 09:36 TU

Greece's new Prime Minister George Papandreou.
(Photo: Reuters)

Greece’s new Socialist Prime Minister George Papandreou will be sworn in on Tuesday and name his cabinet. He has pledged to turn around the country’s economic fortunes with a 100-day plan to bolster employment and clean up public finances.

Papandreou is expected to unveil a significantly slimmed-down cabinet from the current 16 ministries. Inside sources also say he hopes to name an equal number of men and women ministers.

He has promised new laws to redistribute income to the poor, a boost in public investment and a crackdown on corruption.

To bolster purchasing power, he plans to order a public service wage-hike above the rate of inflation next year.

But he will also have to negotiate with the EU, as Greece has the union's worst debt-to-GDP ratio – a benchmark measure used to guarantee financial health of member-states. Greece’s public debt is set to exceed 100 per cent of GDP next year.

Papandreou's Pasok was re-elected Sunday after five years in opposition.