GREECE quietly ushered in new state-run broadcaster NERIT to replace the popular ERT at the weekend.

The muted launch of the new broadcaster reflected the strength of the public indignation at the closure of its predecessor last June as part of draconian budget cuts.

ERT’s sudden closure after more than 60 years on the air shocked even austerity-hardened Greeks.

Many of its employees refused to accept the shutdown, defiantly broadcasting online from its headquarters until riot police forced them out.

Athens abruptly closed ERT as part of a bid to rein in public debt and gain access to EU-IMF rescue loans.

But the closure nearly ended the coalition government of conservative Prime Minister Antonis Samaras.

Interim broadcaster DT took over in mid-July and many of its journalists have been taken on by NERIT.

However the Panhellenic Federation of Journalists’ Unions said the government still owed money to former ERT employees.