Development Minister Skrekas announces four measures to combat high prices

"Those who break the law will pay for it dearly," Development Minister Kostas Skrekas said on Wednesday, announcing four new measures to combat high prices and profiteering.

Regarding the teams of inspectors and the increased needs in the market, the minister said that processes were being accelerated to assist inspectors with private inspectors.

"We have high prices in supermarkets as the factors raising prices have not been fully eliminated. So the increases are partially justified. However, we are seeing that many cost factors are decreasing (energy cost, transport etc) so that conditions are now arising where someone might wish to exploit these situations and we are led to "greedflation". With the four measures we are promoting, we will not permit these actions," Skrekas said.

The measures will include a mandatory shelf of basic goods with a "permanent" price decrease of at least 5% for a period of at least six months, a requirement that large retailers send the ministry lists of the prices charged by their suppliers and state their retail price, the listing of the retail price of basic fruits and vegetables on ekatanalotis combined with figures on the wholesale prices in European markets and, finally, more frequent inspections and an upgrade of the 1520 consumer phone line for reporting unfair prices.