The problems in the Greek public sector cannot be solved simply by reducing the size of salaries or the numbers of staff

Since the beginning of the financial crisis, Greece has implemented a number of deep spending cuts, including a reduction in the size of salaries and numbers of staff employed within the Greek public sector. Fotis Zygoulis and Elina Zagou write that although these reforms have had the intended effect of cutting spending, they have not been accompanied by effective policies geared toward improving overall levels of efficiency and the quality of services provided to citizens and businesses. They argue that this is having a negative impact on economic growth and that reforms which rationalise existing administrative structures should be a key priority.