EU and IMF auditors held talks with Greece yesterday, focusing on reform of the transport sector and the country’s justice system as part of efforts to stabilise the country’s finances and release another instalment of debt aid.

The Greek press agency Ana said the auditors met Transport Minister Yannis Ragoussis to discuss restructuring public transport, including the part privatisation of the national rail service.

After the closed door meeting, Yannis Ragoussis said he understood the need to “not give in to corporatist demands,” referring to mass protests by angry taxi drivers opposed to deregulation of their industry.

Yesterday’s meetings were delayed and moved to secret locations after several dozen civil servants, protesting cuts in public services, occupied several ministries to block entry to the auditors, whose green-light is needed to unblock EU-IMF bailout funds desperately needed in the next few weeks for Greece to stay solvent.

Protesters greeted the auditors at the justice ministry, where talks with officials were to focus on accelerating Greece’s notoriously slow justice system.

The government acknowledges that delays can be so long as to encourage widespread corruption and disobedience, especially in terms of taxes.

The auditor meetings are taking place just as the Greek Parliament is about to debate a law deregulating the taxi sector, opening it to competition.

The measure has provoked the anger of small taxi operators who fear the arrival of big business to their sector.

The conflict between government and taxi drivers has lasted for months while public transport work stoppages have regularly brought Athens to a near standstill.

Yesterday, several hundred retired military officers protested in front of the defence ministry denouncing cuts to pensions over €1,200.