ATHENS
The new migration minister and three deputy ministers were sworn in on Monday, replacing those who resigned last Friday over major fraud involving EU agricultural funds.
Thanos Plevris, 48, was sworn in as migration minister, succeeding Makis Voridis. Haris Theocharis took over as deputy foreign minister, Ioannis Andrianos as deputy rural development minister, and Christos Dermentzopoulos as deputy digital governance minister.
Plevris, like his predecessor Voridis, joined the current ruling New Democracy party in 2012 from the far-right LAOS party, the daily Kathimerini reported, adding that he is expected to maintain the government’s hard line on migration policy.
Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis announced at the Cabinet meeting, which followed the oath-taking ceremony for the new minister and deputy minister, that the country would form a special task force to investigate cases of illegal EU subsidy payments, according to the daily.
“We are already turning the page, in collaboration with the European authorities, so that the agricultural system of support can be reformed, and the funds that were lost by fraudsters can be returned,” the newspaper quoted him as saying.
Greek Migration Minister Makis Voridis, a former agriculture minister, resigned on Friday, following a major scandal involving fraud in EU agricultural subsidies.
Apart from Voridis, Deputy Foreign Minister Tasos Hatzivasileiou, Deputy Minister of Rural Development Dionysis Stamenitis, Deputy Minister of Digital Governance Christos Boukoros, and Secretary General of the Rural Development and Food Ministry Giorgos Stratakos also resigned.
On June 19, the European Public Prosecutor’s Office announced that it has launched an investigation against two former Greek agriculture ministers, Makis Voridis and Lefteris Avgenakis, in connection with a major fraud involving the bloc’s agricultural subsidies.
Earlier, Greek media reported that the European Commission has fined Greece €392.2 million (approximately $453.4 million) concerning the subsidy fraud, which allegedly dates back to 2016.