In a televised public address given following successive meetings with opposition party leaders, Prime Minister George Papandreou asked for broad support for economic reforms and underscored the importance of accelerating their implementation.

The premier anncounced a series of austerity measures - beyond those already submitted by his government to Brussels - that may be painful but "socially fair." 

Among the measures announced by Papandreou are an increase in the taxation of fuel, increased taxes on distributed profits that are not reinvested and on dividends, and an increase in the taxation of offshore companies. One of the measures that will bring revenues quickly will be an increase in the taxation of fuel. Moreover, a bill on incomes policy - that foresees a 10% cut in bonuses and a wage freeze in the public sector - will be tabled in Parliament soon.