ATHENS, April 3 (Xinhua) -- Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis on Friday reshuffled his cabinet after several government figures were implicated in a farm subsidies scandal involving millions of euros.
The reshuffle in the wake of the scandal left key portfolios unchanged, government spokesperson Pavlos Marinakis said in a televised statement, according to state broadcaster ERT.
Margaritis Schinas, former European Commission vice-president, was appointed rural development and food minister, while Evangelos Tournas took over as climate crisis and civil protection minister. The responsibilities of outgoing Deputy Health Minister Dimitris Vartzopoulos will be redistributed within the ministry.
Vartzopoulos and two former ministers were among those named in the European Public Prosecutor's Office (EPPO) investigation.
The changes came shortly after two case files from the EPPO were submitted to the Greek parliament, concerning 11 lawmakers, as well as former ministers and other officials.
EPPO's probe centers on alleged interference in subsidy allocations over several years, with suspected fraudulent payments made to ineligible farmers.
The cases related to the management of OPEKEPE, Greece's former agency responsible for distributing EU farm subsidies. Proceedings to lift the officials' immunity from prosecution are expected to begin next week.
EU prosecutors have also requested that five former lawmakers be included in the investigation. All those implicated are members of the ruling New Democracy party.
In June 2025, a similar case led to the resignation of five senior officials and triggered another cabinet reshuffle. Investigators said subsidies were granted to ineligible farmers using falsified documents between 2019 and 2021. Two party officials also resigned last year after being named in the case.
Opposition parties have called for the dismissal of the ministers and snap elections. They could also table a motion of no confidence against the government in the coming weeks. ■