Does the Government have a plan to tackle the cost of living and expensiveness?
Statement by Haris Polycarpou, member of the Political Bureau and Head of AKEL’s Economic Policy
26 August 2026, AKEL C.C. Press Office, Nicosia
Expensiveness and the price of food and rent is soaring; fuel prices have risen by more than 30 cents per litre over the last six months; electricity and energy are among the most expensive in the European Union, yet the Minister of Finance sees no reason to introduce new support measures, going so far as to make references to the state’s fiscal margins.
It is not enough for the Minister of Finance to admit that high prices have returned, nor is it enough for him to warn us that inflation will reach 4 per cent by the end of the year. What he ought to be saying is what his government’s plan is.
How will it support households and small and medium-sized enterprises?
How much of the State’s additional revenues – resulting from inflation – will be returned to the public who will be paying the extra taxes?
Will he tax the windfall profits of the banks and the energy sector?
Will he at long last tackle the constant rises in fuel prices, which are out of step with international oil prices?
And what will he ultimately do about the incomes of workers and those living below the poverty line?
He hadn’t a single word to say on any of these matters. We are waiting for his next statement to see what the Government’s plan will be for tackling the cost of living.
AKEL will insist that a comprehensive plan to support society is needed. This must include measures such as tax cuts on energy and fuel, including a permanent reduction in the VAT on electricity and the abolition of double taxation on fuel. By taxing the windfall profits in the energy and banking sectors even greater possibilities will be created to provide support to society. By expanding the state’s social policy, proceeding to increase basic benefits (e.g. child benefit, single-parent allowance, Minimum Guaranteed Income) and reviewing the eligibility criteria to strengthen support for specific social groups in the face of rising costs.
