The Greek government announced a mini-reshuffle on Thursday, following the resignation of Deputy Development Minister Lazaros Tsavdaridis. Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, who is in Dublin for the informal EU summit, gave the green light for the announcements after consulting with his close aides.
Mitsotakis tapped Deputy Interior Minister Vasilis Spanakis to replace the ousted Tsavdaridis at the Development Ministry. Spanakis’ former post at the Interior Ministry goes to Vangelis Liakos, one of the younger generation of lawmakers.
Dimitris Vartzopoulos is also returning to the cabinet as Deputy Health Minister responsible for mental health. Vartzopoulos stepped down from that post on April 3, 2026, after the case file on the OPEKEPE scandal was forwarded to Parliament.
The Tsavdaridis affair that reshuffled the cabinet deck
Tsavdaridis resigned following allegations, first reported by MEGA tv, that his daughter had been listed as a member of Pylaia’s championship-winning junior women’s handball team in name only, in order to earn extra points toward her university admission.
Tsavdaridis maintained that his daughter was admitted to the School of Agriculture in Larissa without any athletic bonus points. According to a follow-up report by the network, however, she allegedly used the 10% bonus to apply to the Department of Education in Rhodes, which she ultimately did not attend.
His explanations failed to convince the Maximos Mansion, and his resignation was accepted.
Source: tovima.com
