Athens University of Economics and Business
Who did Euclid Tsakalotos work for between May 2001 and Oct 2004?
Euclid Tsakalotos Euclid Stefanou Tsakalotos ( , ; born 1960 ) is a Greek economist and politician who was Minister of Finance of Greece from 2015 to 2019 . He is also a member of the Central Committee of Syriza and has represented Athens B in the Hellenic Parliament since May 2012 . Tsakalotos was born in Rotterdam , the Netherlands , but moved to the United Kingdom at a young age . He went to St Pauls School in London before studying Philosophy , Politics and Economics at The Queens College , University of Oxford . He went on to complete a masters degree at the Institute of Development Studies , which is attached to the University of Sussex , and returned to Oxford to complete a doctorate in economics under the supervision of Włodzimierz Brus , which he did in 1989 . From 1989 to 1993 , Tsakalotos worked at the University of Kent , where he met his partner , Heather D . Gibson . He moved to Greece , and taught at the Athens University of Economics and Business from 1994 to 2010 , becoming a professor of economics . Since 2010 , he has been a professor of economics at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens . He has written a number of books in both Greek and English and has been published in a range of different academic journals . Due to his upbringing in the UK , he speaks English with a British accent . A student member of the Communist Party of Greece , Tsakalotos joined Synaspismos in the early 1990s and was elected to the Central Committee of Syriza in 2004 shortly after their formation . He was first elected as a Member of the Hellenic Parliament for Athens B in the May 2012 legislative election and has been re-elected in every election since . In opposition from 2012 to 2015 , he was Syrizas shadow finance minister . When Syriza entered government in January 2015 , Tsakalotos was appointed as an Alternate Minister within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs . In April , he took over as head of Greeces negotiating team on the third bailout package . On 6 July 2015 , following Yanis Varoufakiss resignation , Tsakalotos was appointed as Minister of Finance . He was re-appointed in September 2015 following the snap legislative election . Early life and education . Tsakalotos was born in Rotterdam , the Netherlands , in 1960 . He is the son of Stefanos Tsakalotos , a civil engineer who worked in the shipping industry , and the family relocated to the United Kingdom in 1965 when the younger Tsakolotos was five years old . He attended St Pauls School , London from 1973 to 1978 . In St Pauls Schools alumni magazine , he praised his former schoolmaster Keith Perry , saying that the teacher did much to bolster [ his ] self-confidence . During his time at the school , he co-founded its Economics and Politics Society ( known as Polecon ) with his close friend Owen Tudor , who now works for the Trades Union Congress . Tsakalotos went on to read Philosophy , Politics and Economics at The Queens College , Oxford . Whilst at the Queens College , Tsakalotos was an admirer of both G . A . Cohen and Andrew Glyn , a Marxist political philosopher and Marxian economist respectively , who both taught at the university . He also took part in student protests against Margaret Thatchers Conservative government . During his time at university , he became a supporter of Irish republicanism , a view he expressed in his visit to the Sinn Féin ardfheis in March 2015 . One of his university friends at this time , Yannis Stournaras , later became a Greek finance minister and served as Governor of the Bank of Greece . Following graduation , he completed a masters degree ( MPhil ) at the Institute of Development Studies , attached to the University of Sussex . He then returned to Oxford to complete a doctorate ( DPhil ) in economics , studying at Mansfield College . He completed this doctorate in 1989 under the supervision of Włodzimierz Brus , with his thesis , , later being published as a book . Academic career . After the completion of his doctorate , Tsakalotos entered into an academic career . His first role was as a research associate at the University of Kent , from 1989 to 1990 . From October 1990 to June 1993 , he taught at the university as a lecturer . In 1993 , Tsakalotos and his wife moved to Greece , and in October 1994 he began teaching at the Athens University of Economics and Business . In September 2010 , he became a full professor of economics at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens , more commonly referred to simply as the University of Athens . In his capacity as an academic , Tsakalotos served as a member of the executive committee of the Hellenic Federation of University Teachers Associations ( POSDEP ) . In the mid-2000s , Tsakalotos led his students in a several months-long protest against proposed reforms to the Greek education system . Thanos Tsouknidas , an accountant that knew Tsakalotos at the time , said : He was there , involved in the struggle . We were fighting together . His active role in the teachers union brought him popularity , and according to a former student , his classes were often packed . Tsakalotos has written a number of books and articles on Greek and international economic policies , alone and in cooperation with other academics and writers . He has co-authored a number of works with his wife , who has also served as editor for some of the works that he has written alone . Early political career . As a student at the University of Oxford , Tsakalotos joined the Communist Party of Greece ( Interior ) , a eurocommunist party that had split from the main Communist Party of Greece , a Marxist–Leninist party , in 1968 . In the early 1990s , shortly after moving to Greece , Tsakalotos became a member of Synaspismos , a radical left-wing political party , which was to become the largest constituent party of Syriza . Syriza itself was formed in 2004 , ahead of that years legislative election , as a coalition of 13 left-wing political parties in Greece . Tsakalotos was elected to their Central Committee in December 2004 . However , he also remained a prominent member of Synaspismos and served on both their Central Political Committee and their Political Secretariat until a July 2013 party congress , during which Syriza voted to become an independent political party and for all component parties to disband , including Synaspismos . Shortly after Syriza was formed , Tsakalotos stood as their candidate for the prefecture of Preveza in the 2004 legislative election . The Greek government-debt crisis effectively began in 2009 and was a backdrop for Tsakalotos involvement in the creation of Syrizas economic policy . Tsakalotos has been credited as the brains behind the policy , and as a member of Syrizas economics quartet , alongside John Milios , Giorgos Stathakis and Yannis Dragasakis . He has also been credited as one author of Syrizas Thessaloniki Programme , a manifesto which proposed a set of policies oriented towards reversing austerity measures while maintaining a balanced budget . In opposition ( 2012–2015 ) . In the May 2012 legislative election , Tsakalotos was elected as a Member of the Hellenic Parliament ( MP ) representing Athens B , the largest electoral district in Greece . The election saw Syriza win 16.8% of the vote , placing second behind New Democracy , who won 18.8% of the vote , and ahead of PASOK , with 13% . Alexis Tsipras , the party leader , was unable to form a coalition , but also refused to enter into one with PASOK , forcing the country to new elections in June 2012 , where Tsakalotos won re-election as an MP . Tsakalotos said that Syriza had a focus on the European Union , and told The New York Times that a Europe imposing austerity on its citizens for the actions of banks isnt the Europe that the original inspirators of Europe imagined . New Democracy won a plurality of seats in June 2012 and formed a coalition government with PASOK and Democratic Left , making Syriza the largest opposition party with 78 seats . Tsakalotos role in opposition was as the spokesperson for economic affairs in Tsipras shadow cabinet . In opposition from 2012 to 2015 , Tsakalotos was a key proponent of Syrizas economic policy . He argued that Greece needed something similar to the Marshall Plan , with a payment scheme that took into account the strength of the economy . He told Bloomberg News that People say that we are responsible for the situation we find ourselves in . OK , sure . But I think that Germany will find it hard to argue that in 1953 [ at the time of the London Agreement on German External Debts ] they were completely blameless . He appeared in various international media as a spokesperson for Syriza and making the case for their policies : among others , he was interviewed on Lateline , an Australian news programme on ABC , by SBS , another Australian news channel , was quoted by the BBC and Bloomberg , and also appeared in an Intelligence Squared debate arguing for the motion Angela Merkel is Destroying Europe . September 2013 saw his book , co-authored with Christos Laskos , published by Pluto Press . Crucible of Resistance was described as offering badly needed correctives to the prevalent ideas on the Greek situation . The book addressed why the European debt crisis began , with a particular focus on Greece . It argued that the idea Greece was exceptional was a myth and that the crisis had revealed the inadequacies of neoliberalism and social democracy . Tsakalotos was criticised by elements of the Greek media in 2013 when he was accused of living a wealthy lifestyle while criticising austerity in public . He was dubbed the aristocrat of the left , and one newspaper published front-page criticism arguing that Tsakalotos own family wealth came from investments made by companies such as JPMorgan Chase and BlackRock . In December 2014 , the Hellenic Parliament did not approve the new President with the supermajority required , and so a snap election was called for the end of January 2015 . A few days before the 2015 election took place , Tsakalotos was quizzed on Syrizas economic policies by a number of economists , debt campaigners and investment analysts at the London School of Economics . Tsakalotos said there was a need for fiscal space , meaning 6–7 billion Euros a year to spend on an expansionary fiscal policy . He also said that they would cancel the austerity budgets already agreed with the European Union ( EU ) and International Monetary Fund ( IMF ) , pay back the loans from the IMF and focus on rescheduling and writing off the loans from the EU . First term in government ( 2015 ) . Alternate Minister and bailout negotiator . In the legislative election on 25 January 2015 , Syriza won a near-majority of seats , with 149 out of 300 , and so formed a coalition with the right-wing anti-austerity party Independent Greeks . Tsipras became prime minister and formed his cabinet on 27 January , appointing Tsakalotos as Alternate Minister for International Economic Relations , subordinate to the Minister for Foreign Affairs , Nikos Kotzias . Tsakalotos described his role as follows : [ It ] means coordinating our approach to promoting exports and attracting investment . It also means upgrading our economic diplomacy which needs to go beyond traditional sectors , for instance exporting olive oil and importing capital goods . Tsakalotos represented Syriza at the Sinn Féin ardfheis on 7 March 2015 and gave a speech on the conference floor , during which he said that both Sinn Féin and Syriza are part of a great realignment in European politics towards left-wing anti-austerity parties . The leader of Sinn Féin , Gerry Adams , embraced Tsakalotos on the stage following the speech . Tsakalotos then spent several hours afterwards in talks with senior members of Sinn Féin . The Financial Times later commented on this , saying it was a moment of bonding between Syriza and Sinn Féin . Tsakalotos began to gain a more prominent role in the renegotiations with Greeces creditors over a new bailout plan , which at the time were being led by Yanis Varoufakis , the Minister of Finance . On 27 April , Tsakalotos was the made the coordinator of the Greek team negotiating with the creditors representatives over this new bailout plan . This move was largely seen as sidelining Yanis Varoufakis , the Minister of Finance , but the markets reacted positively . In June 2015 , lenders warned that time was running out for a deal to be agreed on a new bailout plan . On 17 June , Tsakalotos warned that Greece would not be able to repay its €1.6bn loan from the IMF at the end of the month unless a new bailout plan was agreed . The deadline for the renewal of Greeces bailout package was also looming at the end of June . On 26 June , an emergency cabinet meeting led to the calling of a referendum on the bailout deal proposed by the creditors . Capital controls and a bank holiday were announced on 28 June , with the Eurozone refusing an extension of the bailout plan and Greece defaulting on its loan to the IMF on 30 June . Minister of Finance . The bailout referendum on 5 July resulted in a No vote to the adoption of the bailout package . The following day,when Alexi Tsipras refused to honor the referendum result , Varoufakis resigned as finance minister . As he left the finance ministry , he suggested that Tsakalotos was likely to succeed him , and Tsakalotos was subsequently sworn-in later that day . In the process of this , Tsakalotos relinquished his previous ministerial position of Alternate Minister for International Economic Relations . Tsakalotos was noted for his differences with Varoufakis , for example , the Financial Times noted that he could hardly be more different from his flamboyant predecessor . At a press conference shortly following his appointment , Tsakalotos said : I cannot hide from you that I am quite nervous . I am not taking on this job at the easiest point in Greek history . Tsakalotos first official meeting as Minister of Finance was on 7 July and was an emergency meeting of the Eurogroup following the vote in the referendum . Tsakalotos brought a note with him that reminded him to display no triumphalism after the No vote in the Greek bailout referendum . Following the talks , he was described as Much better than Varoufakis who was a much tougher and less compromising negotiator . Greece was given 48 hours to agree to a new bailout plan or it would face being forced to leave the eurozone on 8 July , leading to a plan being submitted by the Greek government on 10 July . In a nine-hour Eurogroup meetings on 11 July , Tsakalotos was noted for his calmness in the tough , even violent atmosphere of the talks by observers . The government backed the tenth austerity package which went before Parliament on 16 July . The package was the first in a series of prior actions necessary for negotiations to open up over bailout funding worth 86 billion euros . The package came in two parts , with the first being approved on 16 July , and the second on 23 July . The legislation included a rise in VAT across several goods and services , the abolition of the VAT discount for Greek islands , a corporation tax rise from 26% to 29% , a luxury tax on cars , boats and swimming pools , an end to early retirement by 2022 , and an increase in the retirement age to 67 . Tsakalotos said on 16 July debate , I dont know if we did the right thing , however , I do know that we felt like we had no other choice but do what we did . The contentious vote was opposed by 109 out of 201 members of the Central Committee of Syriza , and 32 Syriza MPs voted against the proposals on 16 July . It also led to a cabinet reshuffle on 17 July , but Tsakalotos retained his role as Minister of Finance . The second set of measures were debated and voted on 23 July , with Tsakalotos beginning the debate , and urging a vote in favour of the measures . Tsakalotos was criticised for his speech , with Ovenden writing that [ his ] argument made him sound little different from the kind of kindergarten exchanges which had characterised Pasok and New Democracy over the years . However , the proposals passed parliament , clearing the way for a new bailout deal to be negotiated with Greeces creditors . A new bailout deal , the Third Economic Adjustment Programme for Greece , was agreed in August 2015 , and the first set of measures went to vote on 14 August , in the form of the eleventh austerity package . Tsakalotos opened the debate , calling the deal a very tough agreement with many thorns . During the debate , he engaged heavily with the acting President of New Democracy , Vangelis Meimarakis , who criticised Tsakalotos for being provocative . Towards the end of the debate , Zoi Konstantopoulou , the Speaker of the Hellenic Parliament , raised so many procedural questions and objections that Tsakalotos missed the 9:30 am vote to catch a flight to Brussels . More than 40 Syriza MPs voted against the plans , and it was suggested that Tsipras may resign , bringing the prospect of another snap election in September . In Brussels later that day , final negotiations were concluded for the Third Economic Adjustment Programme for Greece . On 20 August , Tsipras announced the resignation of the Syriza-ANEL government , and that a legislative election was scheduled for 20 September . Tsakalotos and the rest of the cabinet remained as lame duck ministers whilst opposition parties attempted to form their own government . However , the opposition parties failed to form a government and Vassiliki Thanou-Christophilou was appointed as an interim Prime Minister on 27 August . On 28 August , Thanou-Christophilous caretaker cabinet was sworn in , with George Chouliarakis being sworn in as the interim Minister of Finance . Second term in government ( 2015–present ) . Reappointment as Minister of Finance . Reuters reported that Tsakalotos was considering not running in the September 2015 legislative election , as he did not want to have to implement the bailout agreement . However , these fears were assuaged by Alexis Tsipras when he said there was no doubt that Tsakalotos would stand in the election . He also claimed that , during the election campaign , without Tsakalotos involvement , there would have been no bailout package . In recognition of that , Tsakalotos was made to head the list for Syriza in Athens B . In an interview during the campaign , Tsakalotos admitted that the Greek government had suffered defeat during negotiations with creditors , implying that some responsibility for this lay with his predecessor , Varoufakis . Following the re-election of the Syriza-ANEL coalition , Tsakalotos was tipped to resume the role of Minister of Finance , however the state media reported that he was reluctant to do so . Nonetheless , he was reappointed as Minister of Finance on 23 September , as part of the Tsipras second cabinet . Chouliarakis , the interim Minister of Finance , was retained in the finance ministry as an Alternate Minister of Finance . Later in September , in an interview with the Financial Times , Tsakalotos said that it was absolutely critical that we get something on debt relief . He added : By the second quarter of 2016 , if we get a positive review , bank recapitalisation and debt relief , I don’t see any reason why there shouldn’t be a return to growth . He also said that the new government would make serious attempts to crack down on tax evasion : It will be a central aspect of our policies , which will determine the success of the government , because it’s the only way the Greek people will accept difficult measures that show we’re all in the same boat . At the annual meetings of the IMF and the World Bank between 9 and 11 October 2015 , Tsakalotos had a number of meetings with high-level attendees . On 8 January 2016 , Tsakalotos began a tour of European cities , including Rome , Lisbon , Paris , Helsinki and Berlin , meeting with finance ministers , prior to a Eurogroup meeting on 14 January . In February 2016 , Spyros Economides , Director of the Hellenic Observatory,in order to divert blame and relieve the pressure on Tsakalotos and following a relentless smear campaign against Varoufakis , commented on Tsakalotos performance as Minister of Finance : In some ways , he has done an extremely good job because the mess left by his predecessor both in substantive and presentational terms was horrific . Tsakalotos visited the European Parliament in March 2016 and told MEPs of the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs that he welcomed their role in monitoring the reforms . Bailout review and calls for IMF involvement . The first review of the bailout programme carried out by Greeces lenders stalled in February 2016 over pension reforms . Speaking to Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung , Tsakalotos urged the lenders to complete the review by 1 May as This question of time is important if we want to move from a vicious to a virtuous circle . He wrote to other members of the Eurogroup on 6 May to appeal for their support against extra demands for austerity that , he argued , were beyond the mandate of the Greek government . Speaking in October 2016 , Tsakalotos said that he wanted the IMF to join the bailout programme and that Wolfgang Schäubles position on debt relief for Greece was untenable . Schäuble said that the bailout programme will work , the IMF will be on board and there wont be much debt relief . However , Tsakalotos said that Something has to give there , and I think deep down in his heart he understands that . Hes a wily politician . Hes been around for a long time . I cant believe he doesnt understand you cant have all those three things . Political views . Ideology . Tsakalotos has been described as a Marxist , and Ovenden has written that While Keynes is the main economic reference point for Varoufakis , who opposed the Brussels deal , for Tsakalotos , who signed it , Marx is more that guide to economic and political analysis . Paul Mason described Tsakalotos as a classic Marxist of the New Left , continuing that Tsakalotos comes from that school of Marxism which learned from the 1970s onwards to make compromises with capitalist reality . In an interview with the Financial Times in September 2015 following his re-appointment , he said : I’m one of the government’s most left-wing ministers , politically speaking . However , I want to do things like the recapitalisation of the banks . I can do things that aren’t particularly left-wing . Tsakalotos is also a leading member of the Group of 53 , a prominent faction within Syriza . One report names him as the leader of the Group . The Group was founded in mid-2014 and stands ideologically between the Left Platform and Alexis Tsiprass core backers . After the Left Platform split from Syriza to Popular Unity , the Group of 53 became the most left-wing faction within Syriza . Europe . Tsakalotos has been described as a Revolutionary Europeanist , as he supports European Union integration but not its capitalist principles . In one article , he wrote : [ the ] European Monetary Union has created a split between [ the ] core and periphery , and relations between the two are hierarchical and discriminatory . Tsakalotos has also advocated for a change in [ the ] architecture of the Eurozone . He has also suggested that the EU should have a focus on the development of member countries , which is what requires this change in architecture . In a May 2012 interview on Lateline , Tsakalotos said : At the moment the Eurozone is at risk , not because of the Greek radical left – its at risk because it has an architecture , a financial and economic architecture that is evidently unable to deal with the crisis in the Eurozone , and we think part of the solution is a change in that architecture . In 2011 , he cited a move towards fiscal federalism as a potential solution to the EUs economic architecture . Personal life . Tsakalotos is married to Heather D . Gibson , a Scottish economist currently serving as Director-Advisor to the Bank of Greece and his ofttimes research and writing partner . They met when Tsakalotos was teaching at the University of Kent and they later married in Canterbury . The couple has three children and maintains two homes in Kifisia , along with an office in Athens and a holiday home in Preveza , all courtesy of a large estate belonging to Tsakalotos father . Through his father , Euclid Tsakalotos is a distant relative of Thrasyvoulos Tsakalotos , who served as Chief of the Hellenic Army General Staff from 1951 to 1952 . Tsakalotos has been quoted as saying that his great-granduncle fought on the other side , the wrong side in the Greek Civil War , and was worried that his great-grandnephew would become a liberal , [ but ] certainly not anything further to the left . Tsakalotos is a fan of PAOK FC and was given a shirt with Dimitar Berbatovs name on the back by Alexis Tsipras . When he lived in the UK , he was a supporter of Leeds United . Works . Books . - Crucible of Resistance : Greece , the Eurozone and the World Economic Crisis ( with Christos Laskos , Pluto Press , London , Chicago : 2013 ) , - 22 Πράγματα που μας λένε για την ελληνική κρίση και δεν είναι έτσι ( 22 Things they tell you about the Greek Crisis which are not so ; with Christos Laskos , KPSM Publications : 2012 ) , - Χωρίς επιστροφή ( No Return ; with Christos Laskos , KPSM Publications : 2011 ) , - Corporatism and Economic Performance : A Comparative Analysis of Market Economies ( with Andrew Henley , Edward Elgar Publishing : 1993 ) - ( Avebury Publishers , Aldershot : 1991 ) , Articles and papers . Tsakalotos has published a number of articles and papers , including several co-authored with his wife , Heather Gibson , and others . He has been published in a range of Academic journals , such as the Cambridge Journal of Economics , the Oxford Bulletin of Economics and Statistics and the Oxford Review of Economic Policy . For a full list , see the link to his page on Academia.edu in the External links .