Evidence-Based Policy Making in Greece

Abstract

This chapter analyses the processes of policy-making in Greece. The focus is on the use of research evidence by policy-makers and politicians and the role of experts in policy-making. One of the main criticisms of public administration in Greece is the lack of implementation of laws and governmental decisions. This serious gap between policy and its implementation is apparent in all European Commission reviews relating to the implementation of the prerequisites of the Memoranda agreement between Greece and its lenders. One of the solutions that governments, such as that of the UK, have adopted for improving policy decisions and their implementation is resorting to evidence-based policy. Such a turn, however, is not without problems or criticisms. A discussion about the use of experts in policy-making has been present in Greece for the last decade and has become even more prominent during the ‘technocratic’ government led by Papadimos. This chapter initially introduces us to policy-making in Greece and then turns to an evaluation of the risks and potentials of adopting an evidence-based policy-making style.