Greek people tell UK delegation: "We continue to demand real alternative to austerity"

A delegation of activists, authors and academics from Goldsmiths and across the UK, has just returned from Athens, Greece, where they met with politicians, community groups, trade unionists and activists calling on the Greek government to take a firm stance in opposition to the ‘Troika’.

They are calling on the European Commission, the European Central Bank and the IMF to suspend debt repayments, take control over the Greek economy and install anti-austerity measures, as they were promised. 

The #DebtAction Group delegation is part of a growing movement of likeminded coalitions from across Europe who are raising the alarm about the politics of debt – both national and household debt.

#DebtAction has found that in Greece and across Europe there is a dire need to craft alternative solutions to the ‘new normal’ of perpetual financial crises and endless austerity.

"The average household acts just like the government"

Johnna Montgomerie, from the Political Economy Research Centre at Goldsmiths, led the delegation. She says:

"What is clear from our meetings in Athens is that further negotiation with the Troika will bring no relief to the Greek people.

“The politics of debt in Greece is volatile because the average household acts just like the government: struggling to make its next interest payment with no end in sight. This bleak future gives credence to calls for rupture with lenders.”

Damon Gibbon, Director the UK’s Centre for Responsible Credit, the co-organiser of the delegation, adds: “There is a household debt crisis across Europe that national governments and the European institutions cannot continue to ignore.

“The over-indebtedness of people is dragging down growth as well as resulting in a human crisis of repossessions, homelessness and poverty. We urgently require a European household bail-out with banks, who have thus far evaded their responsibilities, forced to write off a proportion of outstanding debts in return for the considerable state support that they have received.”

Carl Packman, author of Payday Lending: Global Growth of the High-Cost Credit Market, said: "The question of whether Greece should leave the euro altogether is only a secondary issue for many Greeks. Their primary concern is that with whatever currency is being used, household debts are rising, job opportunities are shrinking, and any semblance of a welfare safety net is being eroded. The Syriza leadership need to stop dancing to the tune of the Troika and tell them enough is enough."

Filmmaker Michael Chanan, Professor of Film and Video at the University of Roehampton, accompanied the group for a new documentary, with Dr Lee Salter of the University of Sussex, about contemporary realities of money and debt. Money Puzzles is a sequel to their highly successful 'Secret City' (2012). Filming will take place in the UK, Greece, Spain and Argentina.

What is #DebtAction?

The delegation is part of a series of knowledge exchange activities designed to bring academics, think tanks, civil society and activists together to develop viable solutions to tackle household indebtedness and craft an alternative politics of debt across Europe.

The project is funded through the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) with the intent of mobilising different forms of expertise to facilitate new forms of social innovation.

Find out more about PERC

The Political Economy Research Centre (PERC) is a new centre for cultural and political analysis of economic life, based in the Department of Politics at Goldsmiths.

Its work cuts across various disciplines, including heterodox economics, political science, sociology, anthropology, media and cultural studies. PERC aims to achieve new critical and empirical perspectives on political economy, breaking down boundaries between economics and other social sciences, and between experts and public, in the process.