Daily Press Review - 8/8/2019

Free SEPA transfers up to €1.000

Hellenic Bank customers will gain both time and money, by using the bank’s e-services to transfer money. Hellenic Bank announced that on the basis of its new regulations, SEPA transfers of sums up to €1.000 to all Cypriot and European banks included in the Single Euro Payments Area (through the bank’s Web Banking or Mobile App), will be free from 16 September onwards. The announcement adds that this development is especially beneficial to people who need to frequently transfer money, such as students. The new pricing policy for the completion of payments through Web Banking and Mobile App is expected to benefit a large number of clients, who will be able to complete necessary transactions, easily, quickly and without extra charges. The announcement goes on to say that currently, customers are charged for SEPA transfers of up to €1.000 to Cyprus or abroad. They add that they will put forward a new updated fee catalogue from 16 September 2019 onwards. According to the Bank, the upcoming changes will benefit Web Banking and Mobile App users.



ESTIA: A 12-member team will have the final say

A 12-member team at the Ministry of Labour will be responsible to approve applications for ESTIA. The borrowers will be submitting their applications to the banks and in turn they will send them to the Ministry of Labour, which will be managing the Scheme. The Ministry has already proceeded to hiring two permanent employees as well as five temporary employees who will be working at the Ministry for 2 years. They purchased services by another person and they are now looking for four more people. Already, the Ministry has announced the positions, that will cost €88.800. The vacancies concern a 6-month period, with potential for renewal for another 6 months.



Harris: We will not proceed with tax hike

Shortly after the negative reaction of Cyprus’ business community to the Finance Minister’s suggestion to increase corporate tax from 12.5% to 15%, minister Harris Georgiades stated that seeing that there was no consent, there was no reason to persist on the matter. “Very simply, we will not proceed with it. There is no imperative need to make this change at this moment in time,” said Georgiades in an interview with Sigma TV. “We suggested it as a means of solving certain problems that arose in the effort to increase agreements for double taxation avoidance and exemption from black lists,” he said, adding that his ministry took serious account of the views of the private sector and from the moment that they are against it, “we will not persist”.



Green-light by Moody’s

Politis reports that Moody’s has a positive view of the Cypriot economy, but reiterates that the country has an NPLs problem. Moody’s reports that the credit profile of Cyprus (Ba2 stable) reflects its small but wealthy economy, improved economic resilience and the government's fiscal outperformance in the wake of the country's banking crisis, Moody's said in an annual report today. “Cyprus' strong growth trends and primary surpluses have generated positive debt trends, and we expect deleveraging to resume this year, after a one-off spike in the debt burden in 2018 associated with the capital injection to Cyprus Cooperative Bank”, Moody’s reports.



Reactions over referral of foreclosure bills

Phileleftheros reports that DIKO is evidently annoyed by the President’s intention to refer the foreclosure laws to the Supreme Court. As the Attorney-General told Phileleftheros, he has identified unconstitutional provisions in the three bills, and that is why he will suggest that the President refers them to the Supreme Court. Today, the government will issue an official position on the matter. The article reports that the first bill on foreclosures resulted from an initiative by DIKO, with DISY’s support and essentially constitutes a compromise solution. DIKO’s president, Nicolas Papadopoulos said that if the President refers their compromise bill to the Supreme Court, the borrowers will be left without any protection.



Limassol port road to be completed in September

Politis reports that by the end of September, the new road around the Limassol port will be in full operation. Cybarco was responsible for the road’s reconstruction which lasted two years and five months. The road will complete the broader project of the Limassol vertical motorway. The past five months were a period of delays and extensions due to bad weather conditions.



New hotel in Nicosia

Politis reports that Nicosia is getting a new boutique hotel and specifically at the city centre. The 8-storey building is located at 5 Omirou, next to the Eleftherias square park, which is currently under construction. The store, which had been vacant for years, was sold to a Lebanese investment firm, and will be turned into a two-star hotel called Maralia, with 40 rooms and a restaurant with a roof garden. The cost for the development of Maralia, will be around €6-7m, while interested parties can already apply for a job at the hotel. The hotel will hire around 20 staff members.



AG says Cyprus must comply with Barcelona protocol on coastal zones

The Attorney General issued a crucial opinion on Cyprus’ delays in complying with the 7^th Protocol on Integrated Coastal Zone Management. The Protocol was signed by the EU on 4/12/2008, was ratified on 13/9/2010 and was implemented on 24/3/2011. However, despite the legal obligation of the Cyprus government to comply with the Protocol, this has not yet been signed or ratified and as a result, the colonial and ancient “Protection of the Beach” Law from 1934, is still in force. The Protocol will define significant restrictions on building close to the sea and specifically, it will be prohibited to build structures less than 100 metres from the winter waterline, no matter the type of structure: hotels, mansions, restaurants and cafes. Essentially, it is the AG’s third opinion on the matter over the past decade, which clearly states that it is prohibited to build inside the Coastal Zone, less than 100 metres away from the winter waterline.



GHS health centres will operate during out-of-work hours

The HIO has finished its planning, and by September they expect to have the necessary procedures finalised, so as to have GHS health centres on-duty, operating during out-of-work hours. This means that beneficiaries will be able to contact the on-duty doctor (either a GP for adults or a paediatrician for children) until 10:00 p.m. on weekdays, and from early morning to late afternoon on weekends and bank holidays. Beneficiaries may call the on-duty GP/paediatrician late at the evening, on weekends or bank holidays, if they can’t or don’t want to pay the additional €25 fee that their GP/paediatrician has the right to request. The HIO is expected to make the announcement inviting interested doctors to apply within the next few days. The HIO aims to have two health centres operating at out-of-work hours per city every day. Each health centre will have two GPs for adults and 2 paediatricians. The number of doctors on duty will be determined according to each city’s population and needs. It’s worth to note that these out-of-work hours doctors will accept patients without prior appointment, as they will be there to assist anyone in need.