In a direct rebuttal to PASOK and its leader Nikos Androulakis over the proposed 13th pension, government spokesperson Pavlos Marinakis called on the opposition to formalize its pledge as a legislative proposal and submit it for official cost assessment by the General Accounting Office of the State.
Clash Over Cost Estimates
Marinakis argued that PASOK’s claim — that the measure would cost €450 million — contradicts official data. According to the state budget and the ‘HELIOS’ report, the full implementation of an extra pension payment for approximately 2.5 million retirees would cost €2.5 billion.
“We urge Mr. Androulakis to submit a bill outlining what he calls the ‘13th pension’ — costed at €450 million — so that it receives a formal cost assessment from the General Accounting Office of the State,” Marinakis said.
The government is shifting the debate from political rhetoric to fiscal accountability, directly challenging PASOK’s foundational assumption about affordability. As Marinakis pointed out, €450 million falls far short of covering an additional pension for 2.5 million retirees. “This may well be the only way for PASOK to realize that €450 million simply cannot fund a 13th pension for 2.5 million pensioners,” he added.
Comparison With Existing Measures
Marinakis also contrasted PASOK’s proposal with the government’s existing €300 annual pension supplement, paid each November to eligible retirees — a measure that alone costs €560 million.
PASOK Responds
Hours later, PASOK’s press spokesperson, Kostas Tsoukalas, hit back, accusing the government of distorting PASOK’s proposal. He described New Democracy’s communications machinery as “desperate and distressing” amid mounting pressure.
Tsoukalas emphasized that Androulakis had already presented a detailed cost breakdown as part of PASOK’s 17 commitments to pensioners. Crucially, PASOK’s plan does not call for immediate, full implementation. Instead, it envisions a phased reintroduction: the first instalment in the first year of a PASOK-led government, and the second in the third year.
According to PASOK, the first-year fiscal impact would be €420 million — in addition to the government’s current €300 supplement. By the third year, the cost of the second instalment would reach €840 million. PASOK maintains that the total net cost of delivering the full 13th pension amounts to €1.68 billion — not the €2.5 billion cited by the government. The party explains that while the first phase carries a gross cost of €840 million, the additional burden is limited to €4…