Government deaf to the problems of the public, Akel says

The government is deaf to the problems of businesses and households, main opposition Akel said on Tuesday.

Party leader Stephanos Stephanou was speaking during a tour of construction sites for major developments in Limassol, where he pledged Akel’s support for Cypriot industry.

It is a difficult time for businesses, especially bearing in mind the recent large increases in the price of raw materials, he said.

“A strong economy will offer quality jobs to workers and at the same time support a strong social state,” he added, stressing that Akel’s tours are not just for the businesses but for the workers themselves, “who are of great importance to us.

“We want workers to have dignified working conditions and salaries, so they can have better quality of life,” he said.

Households are also under immense pressure because of price increases, “which has been confirmed by the everyday people we have spoken to,” the party leader added.

Stephanou said that aside from targeted measures, it is imperative to impose measures across the board to relieve businesses and households as much as possible, calling on the government to approve the laws voted in parliament following his party’s initiative “to reduce VAT on electricity, to end double taxation on fuel, to end tax on pollutants, for which we are paying many millions because of the government’s inability to solve the problem with electricity generation”.

These are some concrete steps that would significantly relieve society, he said, pointing out that the state has collected additional revenues of €850 million due to the rising cost of living, and is expected to collect more than €1 billion in increased revenues by the end of the year.

“These are coming out of the pockets of taxpayers and must be returned to them,” he said, adding that Akel has some proposals that the state is “deaf” to.

“Unfortunately the government remains unbothered by the many problems facing the public, but also Cypriot industry”.