Tryfon Alexiadis ( el, Τρύφων Αλεξιάδης; born 1960) is a Greek politician and

tax collector A tax collector (also called a taxman) is a person who collects unpaid taxes from other people or corporations. The term could also be applied to those who audit tax returns. Tax collectors are often portrayed as being evil, and in the modern wo ...

. He is currently an Alternate Minister of Finance in the second Tsipras cabinet, having succeeded

Nadia Valavani Olga-Nadia Valavani ( el, Όλγα-Νάντια Βαλαβάνη; born 16 August 1954) is a Greek politician and economist. She was appointed to the role of Alternate Minister of Finance in the cabinet of Alexis Tsipras on 27 January 2015. She ...

on 17 July 2015, and served continuously during the first Tsipras cabinet and the Vassiliki Thanou-Christophilou caretaker cabinet.

Early life

Alexiadis was born in 1960 in

Kavala Kavala ( el, Καβάλα, ''Kavála'' ) is a city in northern Greece, the principal seaport of eastern Macedonia and the capital of Kavala regional unit. It is situated on the Bay of Kavala, across from the island of Thasos and on the Egnat ...

. His parents were teachers.

Professional career

Alexiadis worked in the accounting departments of large companies until he joined the

Ministry of Finance A ministry of finance is a part of the government in most countries that is responsible for matters related to the finance. Lists of current ministries of finance Named "Ministry" * Ministry of Finance (Afghanistan) * Ministry of Finance and Eco ...

in 1987. He was a member of the Central Council of the Economic Chamber of Greece and served as Vice President of the Occupational Insurance Fund of the Treasury for ten years.

Political career

Alexiadis was the vice president of the Greek tax collector's union, POE-DOY. He was quoted in this capacity by several newspapers, including the ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'' in 2013 and ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'' in February 2015. ''The Guardian'' also described him as "close to Tsipras’s

Syriza The Coalition of the Radical Left – Progressive Alliance ( el, Συνασπισμός Ριζοσπαστικής Αριστεράς – Προοδευτική Συμμαχία, Synaspismós Rizospastikís Aristerás – Proodeftikí Simachía), ...

party". In a cabinet reshuffle on 17 July, Prime Minister

Alexis Tsipras Alexis Tsipras ( el, Αλέξης Τσίπρας, ; born 28 July 1974) is a Greek politician serving as Leader of the Official Opposition since 2019. He served as Prime Minister of Greece from 2015 to 2019. Tsipras has led the Coalition of th ...

appointed Alexiadis as an Alternate Minister of Finance, replacing

who had resigned on 15 July. ''The Guardian'' noted that Alexiadis "had better hit the ground running" as a critical bailout vote was due later that week. Alexiadis was also appointed to a new committee aimed at tackling corruption, headed by

Panagiotis Nikoloudis Panagiotis Nikoloudis ( el, Παναγιώτης Νικολούδης; born 1949) is a Greek prosecutor who served as the Minister of State for Combatting Corruption in the Caretaker Cabinet of Vassiliki Thanou-Christophilou and the Cabinet of A ...

, which met for the first time on 20 July 2015. Alexiadis, in an August 2015 interview with ''

L'Echo ''L'Echo'' is a Belgian business newspaper, published by Mediafin and mainly distributed in Wallonia and Brussels. It is the French counterpart of the Flemish daily ''De Tijd'' which is its sister paper. History and profile ''L'Echo'' originat ...

'', described tax collection in Greece as "complex" and said that he would be judged by his ability to collect taxes. Asked why tax collection seemed so hard, Alexiadis pointed at a lack of political will to make the system work combined with interventions from politicians and other officials. Responding to recent attacks on tax collectors on

Rhodes Rhodes (; el, Ρόδος , translit=Ródos ) is the largest and the historical capital of the Dodecanese islands of Greece. Administratively, the island forms a separate municipality within the Rhodes regional unit, which is part of the So ...

, Alexiadis said: "These reactions are the start of fascism. Citizens cannot attack officials for doing their job.” In October 2015, Alexiadis received a letter in the post with a bullet in it and a note comparing him to a collaborator with the Axis forces that occupied Greece in the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. The letter read: "Until the hour 0, you and your family will know what fear means," and was signed by group called Kokkini Fraxia, or Red Faction. Alexiadis described those who sent the letter as "fascist psychopaths" and the Greek police said that they were investigating the threat. In November 2015, Germany handed the Greek authorities a list of 10,000 Greeks accused of tax dodging via Switzerland, with the total value of the accounts coming to €3.6 billion. Responding to the list, Alexiadis said: "It will not stay in a drawer for three years. The list will be evaluated... and we will see what is hidden behind it. All the services of the ministry of finance and the ministry of justice will cooperate so that we have results as soon as possible.”

Personal life

Alexiadis is married to Sophia Giannou and they have two daughters, Katerina and Evdokia.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Alexiadis, Tryfon Living people Government ministers of Greece People from Kavala Taxation in Greece Syriza politicians Greek MPs 2019–2023 1960 births