21 June 2012 Last updated at 06:17 ET

Greece election: PM Samaras to reveal new cabinet

Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras is to reveal his new cabinet amid speculation about how effective his government will be.

The two leftist parties which have allied with Mr Samaras's New Democracy conservatives have refused to allow their MPs to join the cabinet.

The man tipped for finance minister, Vassilis Rapanos, is current chairman of the National Bank of Greece.

Eurozone finance ministers are to discuss Greece at talks in Luxembourg.

Mr Samaras is holding a further round of talks with the leaders of the other two parties before the cabinet line-up is revealed.

"We expect the cabinet to be announced after the meeting," a New Democracy source told AFP news agency.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel has reportedly congratulated Mr Samaras in a letter, saying she looks forward to co-operatiing with him.

"You're taking over country at difficult time," she wrote, as quoted by Greece's Skai TV. "We all have expectations of your government."

'New ministries'

Mr Samaras is meeting Evangelos Venizelos, leader of the socialist party Pasok, and Democratic Left chief Fotis Kouvelis.

New Democracy won 129 seats in Greece's 300-seat parliament on Sunday, including a 50-seat bonus for coming first in the election. Along with Pasok and Democratic Left, the new government would have a majority of 29.

Mr Samaras became Greece's fourth prime minister in eight months at a brief ceremony at the presidential palace in Athens on Wednesday.

Greek media report that the number of posts in the new cabinet has been slashed.

The new cabinet is expected to consist of 16 ministers and 12 deputy ministers, compared to its 49-strong predecessor, the Greek newspaper Kathimerini reports.

However, two new ministries, for tourism and for the merchant marine, are being created out of the existing development ministry, the paper adds.

Tourism and shipping are major sources of revenue for the Greek economy.

People in Athens who spoke to Reuters news agency were doubtful the new government could improve the Greek situation.

"I don't have anything against [Samaras] but I believe that all the old politicians, like Venizelos and Samaras, should leave and something different should happen so we can have someone new who has never been elected before so that maybe something might change in our situation," said Danae, a 46-year-old kindergarten teacher.

"Otherwise, I don't think anything will happen."

Bailout 'off track'

Greece will be represented at a eurozone finance ministers meeting in Luxembourg by the outgoing Greek Finance Minister George Zanias.

The new minister, Mr Rapanos, is not expected to be sworn in until Saturday.

A top bailout official has warned eurozone states that they must tell Greece to make fresh budget cuts or raise more taxes, or face having to pay themselves.

The country got an initial EU-IMF package worth 110bn euros (£89bn; $138bn) in 2010, then a follow-up this year worth 130bn euros.

It has also had 107bn euros of debt, held by private investors, written off.

Greece's second bailout is "totally off track, months behind schedule", Thomas Wieser, head of the key Euro Working Group, told AFP.

Either you "stick to the fiscal targets and then you need additional measures" from Greece, he said, or you change deadlines, in which case "you need extra money".