Politico: « Funding Scandal » – ND’s « Mandals » for the Blue Skies case

The international press has reached the Blue Skies case, with Politico referring to a « funding scandal » that « shakes the ruling party ».

Blue Skies is a branch of much more well -known V+O, which represents some of the largest companies in Greece

Preceded the revelations from Inside Story and Documento who highlighted the case, with the In To present further evidence of this labyrinthine labyrinth, so the government of Kyriakos Mitsotakis is- and for this issue- with the back to the wall.

Politico notes that opposition parties are calling for research on New Democracy’s relations with the aforementioned company.

Questions about the role of the Public Relations Company focus on a series of leading ND executives and close associates of Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis – including Thanassis Bakola, outgoing Secretary General of the European People’s Party, the Pan -European Party.

Poltico then refers to the actions of Blue Skies. In fact, it is described as a « little known company », but it is in the center of the political lounge and was founded by Thomas Varvitsiotis, son and brother of former New Democracy ministers, and Yiannis Olympios.

Blue Skies is a branch of much more well -known V+O, which represents some of the largest companies in Greece. It was founded in 2003 with V+O and members of the Board of Directors Varvitsiotis and Olympios. At that time, Blue Skies shared the same seat as V+O, reminded Politico.

The main allegation of the opposition is that Blue Skies employed senior New Democracy executives with invisible political funding and that about 15 of its employees posted social media to promote Mitsotakis’ interests, including the attack on the families of the 20th.

The government denies any relationship with the company.

Politico’s relevant post in X:

Greece’s Opposition Parties Are Demanding An Investigation Into The Government’s Ties to a Politically Connected Communications Company.https://t.co/2jdq9ed6bd

– Politicoeurope (@politicoeurope) May 1, 2025

Opposition calls for answers – « extreme institutional diversion, undermines democracy »

Politico then refers to opposition demands.

The opposition party, PASOK, calls for « answers to the activities of this company and the interconnections between the New Democracy, a mechanism of propaganda and private companies, including, according to reports, appear to be produced and channeled black political money. »

« After so many revelations, we expect the immediate intervention of the competent judicial authorities, » the party said in a statement on Tuesday, the well -known medium notes.

SYRIZA MEP Costas Arvanitis called on EU Justice Commissioner Michael McGrath and the European Parliament « to act accordingly in order to restore the confidence of Greek citizens in the democratic process ».

New Left MP Nassos Iliopoulos said: « The evidence creates well -founded suspicions that public funding is used to support government propaganda, in a gross violation of the Constitution and the laws on transparency of political money. It is an extreme institutional diversion that undermines democracy. « 

The big ‘blue’ names involved

Politico refers to a documento report that emphasized that more than half of the 57 people officially referred to as Blue Skies officials had high -ranking positions near Mitsotakis or the New Democracy.

No one mentioned in his biography his role in corporate public relations.

In addition to the outgoing EPP Secretary -General Bacolas, the names include the Minister of Labor and Social Security, Domna Michaelidou and the Deputy Minister of Transport, Konstantinos Kyranakis.

Most of them seemed to work in the company when Mitsotakis took over the party leadership in 2016 and stopped in 2019, when the New Democracy won the election and took official roles. Others, such as Ornsaki Roussetou, who works at the Prime Minister’s communications office, continue to appear in the company’s payroll, Politico stresses.

When asked specifically about Bakolas, Michaelidou, Kyranaki and Roussetou, government spokesman Pavlos Marinakis rejected the charges, saying that many party members would obviously make money from the private sector when they had no remuneration.

Politico is reminiscent of what Pavlos Marinakis supported. « In New Democracy, a party position, a position, that is, in the party, is not a job. Along with this position, people work in the private sector. « 

‘ND’s shadow’

The opposition’s objection, Politico writes, is that Blue Skies looks like a shadowy business of the New Democracy, but Marinakis described this claim « science fiction ». On the contrary, he said he argues that civil servants must have experience in the private sector.

« I do not know which companies these people have worked. It is good that they work in the private sector and we still want more executives who work either in the public or private sector and at the same time working for the party they believe in, « he said.

Bakolas refused to comment. Kyranakis confirmed on a local channel that he worked on Blue Skies from 2016 to 2019, when he was a Deputy Party spokesman, and claimed that he was « a regular employee paying regular taxes ». Government officials did not respond to a request for commentary on Roussetto.

When asked about specific policies with Blue Skies, public relations company representatives refused to comment.

« Unfortunately, we cannot comment on specific people and their role in Blue Skies due to Greek data protection law, which does not allow companies to provide information on current or former employees, » said company representatives in a statement.

More generally, however, Blue Skies’ representatives argued that the criticism of indirect parties « does not correspond to reality », adds Politico.

« The truth is that, in the past, many of our businesses have hired people with an understanding of the political and political world to help us navigate the complex waters of crisis. This is a common market practice followed by our counterparts both in the Greek and international market. This reality has been distorted, « they said.

‘Propaganda Mechanism’

The opposition’s demand to investigate potentially problematic policy funding comes on the occasion of the dispute over the involvement of about 15 Blue Skies employees in a « propaganda engine » of creators on social media with the aim of supporting Mitsotakis. This was revealed in a separate survey of the Inside Story site Politico notes.

Inside Story’s research focused on the « Truth Group » with hundreds of thousands of social media fans, who are managed by two people working for Blue Skies, the report said.

The account has caused a particular rage with its attacks on the families of the victims of the Tempe railway accident, which has become a major political headache for the Mitsotakis government.

The Public Relations Company has distanced themselves from the activities of these employees, insisting that the « Truth Group » and other anonymous accounts were not the company’s work, Politico writes.

« As a company we do not monitor our employees’ accounts on social media. However, we are completely condemning any use of anonymity to cause damage or defamation, « the company said in a statement.

Ministers and government officials, however, have issued statements to defend « the children who are the truth group ».

« I have a lot of respect for them, » Marinakis said. « I have absolutely no involvement with them, » he added, but insisted that he supported them in the « slander campaign », the Politico article concludes.