Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has announced the launch of a process to amend the country’s current constitution, which dates back to 1975.
In a video message released on Feb. 2, Mitsotakis said Greece is formally initiating a public dialogue on constitutional reform.
Speaking in his capacity not only as prime minister but also as leader of the ruling New Democracy party, he called on the party’s parliamentary group to submit their proposals on constitutional amendments by March.
Referring to the existing constitution, adopted in 1975, Mitsotakis said it has “indeed provided political stability and order for 50 years” and described it as “a living text.”
However, he added that this does not change the fact that it “belongs to the 20th century.”
Stressing that the time has come for a new constitutional framework that takes into account contemporary challenges such as artificial intelligence and the climate crisis, Mitsotakis said Greece needs changes that would serve as a new and sustainable foundation.
These include provisions on the prosecution of ministers for crimes committed while in office and measures to combat the so-called “deep state.”
Among the ideas he put forward were limiting the presidency to a single six-year term and granting judges a greater role in the selection of senior members of the judiciary.
Mitsotakis also invited proposals from opposition parties and the wider public, stating that the government’s intention is to pursue “a bold constitutional revision.”
“I hope that this constitutional revision will act as an antidote to the toxicity and sterile partisan polarization that characterize our political system,” he said.
The government plans to establish a parliamentary pre-revision committee by April. The timetable for the constitutional reform process is expected to be outlined during a regular briefing by government spokesperson Pavlos Marinakis.
