The General Secretary of AKEL: The government should permit reduction of energy taxes

 

AKEL again called on the President to withdraw the referrals on the three bills passed for the reduction of energy taxes

12 September 2022, AKEL C.C. Press Office, Nicosia

The General Secretary of AKEL Stefanos Stefanou has again called on the President of the Republic and the government to respond to AKEL’s demand to withdraw the referrals of the three bills passed by a big majority of Parliament – with the exception of the ruling DISY party – concerning the reduction of VAT in the energy sector, both on electricity and fuel.

In statements made during a tour of the district of Larnaca, the General Secretary of AKEL pointed out that the energy sector is very important because depending on the given prevailing situation in the electricity sector and the price of fuels, all the other activities and sectors of the economy and sectors that affect people’s quality of life are affected. “If the President adopts and responds to them specific demand AKEL has proposed, it means that there will be an immediate reduction in electricity and fuel prices and thus a part of what the state currently collects as revenues will return to citizens.”

The General Secretary of AKEL pointed out that in the first seven months, the government has recorded increased revenues of 850 million euros due to the price hikes and revenues that come out of the pockets of taxpayers. “It is therefore the government’s obligation to see how it returns this money [to the people] so that we can help citizens and small and medium enterprises and businesses in general to cope with the difficulties,” he said.

The General Secretary of AKEL visited Larnaca as part of the tours that AKEL has been organising for some time now aiming to see on the spot the rich and multifaceted work that the Municipality of Larnaca is carrying out and at the same time to help solve any problems that the city and the Municipality are facing.

The AKEL delegation, headed by the Party’s General Secretary, also visited the Larnaca Sewerage Board where “a very remarkable project is underway”, according to Stefanos Stefanou, but at the same time it is noted that, due to the government’s responsibility, there are long delays in various phases of the important projects that need to be fulfilled.

“This has provoked both condemnation from the European Union and the imposition of fines that taxpayers will be called upon to foot the bill. This demonstrates the need for the projects that are planned to be implemented and promoted primarily on the responsibility of the government and the bodies involved,” S.Stefanou said. He noted in particular that the ongoing contacts with the people highlight the grave concern and social and economic insecurity that people feel as a result of the price hikes and prevailing general situation.

Finally, the General Secretary of AKEL pointed out that “to address the difficult conditions citizens face- without any promising prospects for solving the problems that are looming internationally – there is a need to promote comprehensive and complex solutions”. He noted that “the government is addressing various situations in a very fragmentary way,”, and called on the government to respond to AKEL’s demand for the President’s referrals to be withdrawn from the Supreme Court and to permit a reduction in energy taxes.