Officials bid farewell to historic labour ministry building

Officials on Thursday bid farewell to the “historic building” that has hosted the labour ministry for decades.

To mark the occasion, Labour Minister Yiannis Panayiotou invited former ministers and permanent secretaries to the current premises for a courtesy meeting.

“We came together here today with former permanent secretaries and former [labour] ministers to say farewell to the building, as well as to exchange views on various matters,” he later told reporters.

The “historic cycle” of the building is now closed, he added.

Asked about the fate of the premises, Panayiotou said they are in touch with the transport ministry to figure out how to make use of it, without tampering with the building’s architectural traits.

On the cost of relocating the labour ministry, he said around €20 million was set aside and that the decision was taken by the previous government.

The €20 million is for purchasing the Metropolitan building – the new premises of the labour ministry. It’s located on Spyros Kyprianou Street in downtown Nicosia.

Discussions in parliament about the relocation had gone on for about two years, partly due to objections raised by the auditor-general regarding the cost.