Greece promised to speed up ambitious targets to reduce its massive budget deficit Tuesday to conform with European Union spending rules in just three years, helped by higher taxes on cigarettes and alcohol and lower bonuses to civil servants, according to AP. Finance Minister George Papaconstantinou announced the news on the eve of a visit by EU finance officials, who are arriving in the Greek capital Wednesday to review Greece"s fiscal plans. The country"s new Socialist government is now promising to reduce the budget deficit, projected at 12.7 percent of gross domestic product for 2009, to 3 percent by the end of 2012. It had earlier promised to reach that target by the end of 2013. «The prime minister has asked us to take immediate decisions so that all the major economic changes will take place within three years,» Papaconstantinou said. «That means fiscal adjustments will be completed ... within three years,» he added. Separately, the Finance Ministry"s general secretary Dimitris Georgakopoulos said the accelerated debt reduction program would come from bigger than expected tax increases on cigarettes and alcoholic drinks, as well as sweeping cuts to bonuses given to civil servants. However, he ruled out a hike in sales taxes for 2010. Visiting officials from the European Commission and European Central Bank are due in Athens Wednesday _ a public holiday for Epiphany _ for a three-day review of plans to reduce Greece"s swelling debts. The so-called stability plan must be submitted to the European Commission by the end of the month. Government spokesman Giorgos Patalotis told state-run radio that the plan would be submitted before the deadline. Greece is facing its worst debt crisis in decades and has come under intense European Union pressure to improve its public finances and comply with deficit limits intended to support the shared euro currency. Three international ratings agencies last month downgraded Greece"s credit rating, despite government promises to sharply curb public spending with a civil service hiring freeze and a 10 percent cut in operating costs in 2010. The national debt is expected to reach a staggering ¤300 billion ($433 billion) in 2009.
