Foreclosures should be suspended and rents regulated
AKEL on the state schemes to support labour and the economy
AKEL C.C. Press Office, 3rd September 2020, Nicosia
The continuation of state support schemes was and is imperative, because the socio-economic consequences arising from the pandemic were and will be painful for a big section of working people in many sectors of the economy, especially tourism, catering, culture and the leisure industry. Thousands of small and medium-sized businesses are also under great pressure.
For AKEL, the primary goal is to protect working people’s jobs and incomes. The messages to big employers are very clear: Working people and small and medium-sized businesses cannot pay the cost of this crisis as well. AKEL will continue to stand by working people and the trade union movement against policies and practices that victimize them.
At the same time, households, the self-employed and small and medium-sized businesses continue to be threatened with foreclosures and evictions. The issue of rents remains in essence unresolved. AKEL has already called on the Minister of Finance to take action to extend the period of suspension of foreclosures which ended on 31st August. We recall that since April we have submitted a Draft Bill in Parliament for a legislative suspension of foreclosures. The government has a responsibility to take measures to extend the suspension of foreclosures, but also to effectively address the problem with rents, so that the social and economic problems in the coming months won’t multiply dramatically.
