Greece takes important step, Mitsotakis proposes lifting ministers' immunity

Greece’s prime minister proposed on Monday to review the legal immunity of ministers and guarantee “jobs for life” for state sector employees, in an effort to restore voter confidence after a corruption scandal and build support ahead of national elections in 2027.

The center-right government of Kyriakos Mitsotakis remains ahead in opinion polls but has been rocked by a corruption scandal in which farmers, aided by state employees, falsified land ownership to receive subsidies. The affair was uncovered by EU prosecutors in 2025 and parliament is investigating the matter.

Greeks were also angered by the government’s handling of the 2023 train crash, which killed 57 people, the worst ever recorded in the country. It sparked the biggest mass protests in Greece since a devastating decade-long debt crisis. A trial begins next month, with protesters demanding full political accountability.

In Greece, only parliament can investigate ministers or lift the immunity of lawmakers, according to the 1975 constitution, which has been revised four times.

“The world of 2026 is different and presents new challenges,” Mitsotakis said in a letter to his 156 deputies in the 300-seat parliament and in a televised speech.

“The time is ripe for a bold constitutional review towards a functional democracy,” he added.

To make public administration more efficient, Mitsotakis suggested that the lifelong job security that state employees have enjoyed for more than a century should also be reviewed, to address poor performance.

Mitsotakis and his party took power in 2019 and were re-elected in 2023 for another four-year term.

For the proposed changes to enter into force, they must be approved by two consecutive parliaments and an additional majority of 180 MPs is required in at least one of the two votes.