Government celebrates that Cyprus is going to re-enter the markets
Statement of Stavros Evagorou, Deputy Parliamentary Spokesman of AKEL-Left-New Forces on public finances
AKEL C.C. Press Office, 29th April 2015
For sure, the capacity of a state to borrow can be considered as positive. At the same time even more important is for both citizens and the businesses of this state can borrow and access to the funding.
Equally important is in what direction this loan will be channeled towards. Based on what has been said by the Minister of Finance it will be used to pay back another debt. We wonder how is it possible on the one to say that Cyprus will not need all the money from our lenders (who lend us at a rate of about 2%) and at the same time to borrow from the markets at a rate of 4%.
At the same time, how can the with:
- 70,000 people unemployed,
- 240,000 of our fellow compatriots below the poverty line,
- 50,000 of our countrymen dependent on social food banks.
Furthermore, how can the government celebrate that Cyprus is re-entering the markets in a country that has:
- The highest interest rates in the Eurozone
- The highest percentage of non-performing loans in the world
- zero growth rates and,
- Salaries of 350-500 euros
