The House committee on labour has given the government three weeks to present its final position on a bill seeking to exclude agricultural subsidies from the Cyprus agricultural payments organisation (Koap) when calculating eligibility for benefits, House committee president Andros Kafkalias announced on Tuesday.

He said the bill, submitted by Akel, has gained the support of all participating organisations, including agricultural groups, the Pancyprian organisation of large families, the Pancyprian organisation of five-member families, and trade unions.

Kafkalias described the current situation as contradictory, saying it is “inconsistent and unfair” for the government to promote youth participation in agriculture through incentive schemes while penalising beneficiaries by cutting their child benefits once they are approved for agricultural grants.

He added that the child benefit is not a simple allowance, as it is also linked to other forms of assistance, such as subsidies for tuition fees, food expenses, transport, and various discounts.

Kafkalias concluded that subsidies and financial aids provided by Koap for investment projects or young farmers’ initial establishment costs, which cover capital expenses and are not real income, should not be included when assessing eligibility for child benefit.