During his key campaign speech at the Benaki Museum Annexe in Athens, Prime Minister Antonis Samaras spoke of Greece returning to its pre-crisis state, the increase in the country’s GDP, the opening of new jobs and the prosperity all citizens shall see again. “Until 2020, Greece will have recovered the prosperity it had before the crisis,” said Samaras, stressing also that conditions would gradually improve for the average citizen. He said that growth would begin in 2014, reaching 2.9% in 2015 and 3.7% in 2016, citing data from international organization and research centres.

The Prime Minister furthermore attacked main opposition SYRIZA, charging the party of using the prospect of a new Greece as a campaign motto alone. “These are all the people who want instability…who for the past two years have voted down any reform attempt, who have no plan and who want to turn us back,” he said, while referring to the upcoming double elections on Sunday May 25, he called Greeks to “respond to the dilemma, next Sunday, of going ahead to growth or returning to the crisis”.