Deepening austerity policies cannot address the crisis and create conditions for growth
Statement of Stefanos Stefanou, AKEL Political Bureau member
AKEL C.C. Press Office, 16th April 2016, Nicosia
The reference of Jyrki Katainen European Commission Vice-President for Jobs, Growth, Investment and Competitiveness that Cyprus has not submitted any proposal whatsoever to be included in the Juncker investment planning package raises legitimate questions about the government’s growth and development strategy:
- Do restrictions exist for Cyprus as far as the possibility of utilizing the package is concerned?
- What steps has the Government taken to utilize the package’s possibilities?
- Does the Government consider that the above-mentioned plans for the Cyprus economy weren’t needed?
We reiterate that the response to the crisis and the creation of conditions for growth cannot be done through the deepening of austerity policies, neither by the government’s public statements about the economy’s supposed “success story”.
For the economy to kick-start a coherent strategy for growth and the utilization of funds for the implementation of developmental projects is needed, which the government is evidently not promoting.
It should be noted that despite the weaknesses and shortcomings of the Juncker package, in the first quarter of 2016 42 infrastructure and innovation projects and 84 programs to support SME’s were funded. Cyprus is absent!
