ATHENS – People who owe debts to the Greek state and don’t pay won’t see their names in print until June 30, 2023 after a plan to name-and-shame them was delayed for now.

The Finance and Labor Ministries, just about to publish the names of those who owe taxes and social security due, postponed the move to give debtors more time to pay and get their names off the list, offering them installments.

The decision states that: “Exceptionally, for the calendar years 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023, the statements that have been made public are being updated until June 30, 2023,” said Kathimerin

The Labor Ministry at the end of May put out a circular calling on the debtors to pay up – those who owed 150,000 euros ($153,480) – to settle by June 21, although their names weren’t published then either.

This is the third consecutive year that the New Democracy government of Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has put off the plan to reveal the names, no indication why it didn’t go ahead.

In 2020 and 2021, the list was not issued because of the COVID-19 pandemic that locked down businesses for months and saw workers laid off during the health measures, but the virus has abated enough for the governent to ease restrictions and push an economic recovery.