Theodorikakos: The maximum fines for violations of price control measures are tripled

Development Minister Takis Theodorikakos sent a strict message to companies to respect the implementation of the measures and to avoid unfair practices and profiteering, in an interview with Mega TV on Friday. The minister announced that the maximum fines for violations of the price control measures are being tripled, while he noted that he asked the Competition Commission to give priority to the inspections of multinationals and to what extent they price their products more expensively in our country.

Theodorikakos referred to the three lines of approach for the de-escalation of prices, which the government is following. First, by providing information to consumers. An informed consumer has a lot of power, he underlined, and focused on the e-katanalotis platform where citizens can see and compare the prices of more than 3,000 products in all supermarkets. "We need to strengthen the consumer awareness of us all," he pointed out.

The second line of action concerns the state, the controls to ensure compliance with the measures, with an emphasis on the fact that supermarkets cannot sell with at a profit greater than that they had on December 31, 2021, as well as the ban on offers on products that have been repriced. "Today the maximum fine increases from 2 million euros to 6 million euros. "No one should think that they can break the law," the minister underlined. He also spoke about strengthening controls by hiring additional staff for inspection authorities and the overall reorganisation of the control mechanism, both at the central level and in the regions.

The three-line approach, Theodorikakos said, is completed with the cooperation of everyone, the state, citizens, consumer organisations, independent authorities, with healthy entrepreneurship.