The government has finished examining all pending applications filed under the – now defunct – citizenship-by-investment programme, and has duly briefed the European Union, Interior Minister Nicos Nouris said on Tuesday.
The Cypriot scheme was axed last November after an undercover Al Jazeera video showed former House president Demetris Syllouris and former Akel MP Christakis Giovanis offering help to an imaginary Chinese businessman with a criminal record to secure citizenship.
As of November 1, 2020, the official date the scheme ended, the interior ministry said it had 1,417 pending applications – about half of each from investors and their dependants.
Speaking at a land development congress in Nicosia, Nouris said these pending applications have been processed, with the government informing the EU about it on August 5. The applicants themselves have yet to receive notification of the outcome, as the files are still under review by the attorney-general’s office.
“We are now waiting for the EU’s response,” Nouris noted.
The government has had to tread carefully, what with Brussels already signalling its strong disapproval of Cyprus’ continued processing of applications after the investment scheme’s termination.
The Commission added at the time that were Cyprus’ reply not satisfactory, the matter could go before the European Court of Justice.
“While Cyprus has repealed its scheme and stopped receiving new applications on November 1, 2020, it continues processing pending applications,” the commission said.
“Hence, today the commission decided to take the next step in the procedure against Cyprus by issuing a reasoned opinion. The commission considers that the concerns set out in the letter of formal notice were not addressed by Cyprus,” it added.
The Commission gave Cyprus two months to take the necessary measures to address its concerns – mainly that investors with no links to the country other than their investment were granted passports.
In other remarks on Tuesday, Nouris said Cyprus has learned from past mistakes. The government is devising a new scheme seeking to attract foreign investors, but with safeguards ensuring that businesspeople have real ties to Cyprus.
The ministries of the interior, finance and commerce are discussing ways in which to improve the headquartering regime in Cyprus – geared at attracting certain businesses.
People who were living in Pissouri landslide homes accuse the government of double standards in comparison with fire-stricken areas.
Residents of Pissouri homes that have either been destroyed or seriously damaged by a landslide have yet to receive a penny from the government or any assistance and have accused them of double standards.
The comments came in the wake of the deadly fires in Arakapas in July that claimed the lives of four people and the ensuing swift approval by the cabinet of a €6 million budget. This will go to compensate people who lost their homes and livelihoods, including families of four Egyptian workers who died. A 67-year-old man is suspected of starting the fire in Arakapas which destroyed over 55 square kilometres.
However, the state’s ‘discriminatory’ response has angered Pissouri residents who have appealed to the government to step in for many years, and once again raises the question of what constitutes a natural disaster, resident Simon Carroll said, speaking to the Sunday Mail this week.
“The wildfires are extremely sad and shouldn’t have happened, but there is a real sense of injustice and I think there is discrimination against us. We don’t want to leave, many of the other residents have had to. We want to stay here, our son was born here and attends a local school,” he said.
Previously, the government had ruled out direct compensation to the affected property owners because that would be tantamount to an admission of responsibility by the state.
“It appears that 80 per cent of homes lost in the recent wildfires in Arakapas did not have building permits and whilst sad and disastrous for those families concerned, no doubt they have received the government recovery package that was put together within two weeks of them losing their homes,” Carroll added.
What actually constitutes a natural disaster, a wildfire, a slow-moving landslide? he asked. “We are dying by inches every day and no-one cares. Everybody should be treated fairly and the people of Pissouri have not been,” he said.
Many of the affected homes in Pissouri have virtually collapsed, the result of a continuous and accelerating landslide and a number of homes have been deemed unfit for habitation. Homes and gardens are ripped apart, walls and pools are collapsing and roads split, buckled and impassable.
“My question is why Pissouri residents, who have built legally on land identified by the district planning office and zoned it for building development, which had the proper building permits and received title deeds, received no assistance whatsoever from this government. More than twenty homes have received compulsory eviction notices because of the destruction caused by the reactivation of a slow-moving landslide. Surely this is the result of a natural disaster too,” added Carroll.
British residents whose homes haves been destroyed have also featured on a number of TV and radio shows in the UK highlighting their plight, and retirees Kayt and her husband Peter Field, once again appeared on a BBC TV show via Zoom around six weeks ago.
Peter and Kayt Field were evicted from their four-bed villa with swimming pool in March 2015.
“We had nothing to add as an update, as nothing at all has happened.”, Peter said.
“We want to know when we will be getting some sort of help for losing our homes. We are despairing.”
The couple were evicted in March 2015, when officials, “just slapped a notice on their door” and no help was offered and no care for people was shown, Peter said.
The Fields purchased their four-bedroom villa with a substantial garden and pool in 1993, and decided to retire to Cyprus, a country they fell in love with when Peter was stationed on the island.
Now, it has all but collapsed and they have no means of living elsewhere. A kindly neighbour offered them a property to live in until they are able to get back on their feet.
No insurance company will insure against landslide damage and the properties in Pissouri were built by different developers.
In 2015, several property owners came together to form the Pissouri Housing Initiative Group (PHIG) and Georgia-Elina Zoi, a lawyer represents some of the home owners.
It appears that the government’s budget for work to shore up the area and make it safe has been slashed from €32m to €8m.
In 2020, Interior Minister Nicos Nouris pledged that the government was determined to move ahead with “a major stabilisation project” with the residents’ safety being the top priority.
However, Zoi said that the government is now only going to spend €8 million (the amount in the state budget for 2021) and only for the construction of one pile-wall. It will do none of the stabilisation work on the landslide area, she said.
“The Cypriot government will proceed only with the construction of the pile-wall at the bottom of the hill behind the cemetery. The company had suggested the construction of three such pile-walls and that this work would follow the stabilisation work at the foot of the landslide.”
Nothing is scheduled for the rest of the area, she stressed. “Even if a piled wall is constructed, it will only protect the hill and the traditional village with the Cypriot houses. The landslide area will not benefit at all,” she added.
Regardless of the causes that triggered the landslide and continue to accelerate it, properties and infrastructure is destroyed, and a landslide is a natural disaster, she said. However, it seems that some of those in power have decided to abandon the foreign residents of the area and focus only on constructing one pile wall, the same project they had decided to do even before the survey, before the understanding of the landslide and before any research, she said.
In addition, there is still no evacuation plan, nor any help or plan for the landslide area and its residents, she added.
“If there was an earthquake or heavy rain, which is a real possibility, there is no evacuation plan in place. Access to homes is very tricky and in heavy rain the ground can move very quickly,” said Carroll.
Previously, Nouris stressed that the goal of the government was not only to restore the territory of the region but to upgrade it. Athletic facilities were also planned.
“The main work for protecting the landslide area, the residents and their investments in Cyprus was the massive stabilisation work at the foot of the landslide and this is now not even in the plans of the government,” said Zoi.
Work was estimated to conclude at the end of 2022, but as yet, “not one sod of earth has been turned,” said Carroll.
YouTube video from ‘Inside Out South’ broadcast on BBC One in the south of England on Monday 24th September 2018:
For the second consecutive month, the price of construction materials surged in August 2021 compared to August 2020, recording an annual increase of 14.37% according to data published by the Cyprus Statistical Service.
Crucial inputs such as steel, cement, sand, stone aggregates and wood-oriented materials have seen a price increase in the last one year, pushing up the overall building costs.
Compared to August 2020, increases were noted in:
Metallic products (31.27%) including iron and steel (47.42%)
Wood, insulation materials, chemicals and plastics (12.93%)
Electromechanical products (11.02%)
Minerals (2.55%) including Cements (5.36)
Mineral products (1.26%)
The Cyprus Statistical Service notes that “Prices of materials used in construction are collected on a monthly basis based on a sample of products and suppliers. The reference date for the prices collected is the 15th each month. Prices are valued excluding VAT. The data collection is carried out by telephone, fax or e-mail. Prices of materials are based on actual prices rather than list prices.”
In addition to building materials, transport costs have also risen with the price of crude oil rising approximately 80% since October 2020. Oil is essential to the industry since the manufacturing of the building materials, their transportation and the construction site machinery operation all depend on oil.
A further high rise building may soon be built in the Germasogia area of Limassol following the submission of an environmental impact assessment study by Cyagama Ltd for the Westminster Residences development.
The proposed development comprises a central 81-metre-high skyscraper flanked by two outwardly identical 4 story buildings on a 7,925 square metre site approximately 700 metres from the sea.
The main building includes 17 floors of apartments, a roof garden with a swimming pool, a roof and a stairwell to the roof. The building will have an open semi-basement that will include a gymnasium, a Turkish bath (hammam), locker rooms, an equipment room, staircase and lift. The basement will provide 44 parking spaces.
The two smaller flanking buildings are approximately 18 metres high comprising 4 floors of apartments with an outdoor pool on the 3rd and 4th floors, a floor for storage, an equipment room, lift and parking spaces for 7 vehicles.
The project will also include a further 52 parking spaces, bringing the total number to 110 of which 9 will be reserved for the disabled.
The area around the site will be landscaped and planted with endemic/native trees.
The banking sector faces multiple challenges ranging from the large percentage of non-performing loans (NPLs) to climate change; despite progress made, speakers told the Association of Cyprus Banks AGM.
Finance Minister Constantinos Petrides said although the pandemic isn’t over yet, the progress of the Cypriot banking sector is already remarkable and steadily moving towards sustainability.
Nevertheless, Petrides noted, “the challenges for the banking sector remain”, noting the size of Non-Performing Loans is still large both relative to the size of the economy and the relevant European index.
Petrides assured bankers the Government would continue to facilitate the management of NPLs, to significantly improve the banks’ prospects.
Cyprus Central Bank governor Constantinos Herodotou also noted the progress made by banks in most areas in recent years but emphasized they need to continue on their positive path and adapt in time to meet new challenges.
“Further adjustments are needed to remain competitive in Cyprus and Europe and effectively fulfil their main purpose of supporting the real economy by granting new loans.”
The banks, he argued, should be especially careful in managing risks arising from the pandemic by properly adapting their policies and procedures.
“Following the end of the loan repayment moratorium, the banks must focus their attention on the evolution of the quality of their loan portfolios.
“After about eight months, the picture is encouraging, but there is a significant amount of credit facilities whose repayment, due to restructuring, is yet to begin.
“There should be no complacency.”
He said banking institutions should intensify their efforts to provide sustainable restructuring and improve procedures for swift and more efficient communication with borrowers to support businesses and economic activity.
Herodotou said the banks should also intensify their deleveraging efforts.
“Banks need to timely calculate and manage the risks posed by climate change.”
The European Central Bank will conduct the first emergency simulation exercises for these risks in 2022.
“Although the situation is slightly improved, there is no room for complacency. The effects of the pandemic on the banking sector as well as on the economy as a whole are obvious and ongoing”, Chair of the Association, Panicos Nicolaou, said.
Director-General of the Cyprus Banks Association Michalis Kammas said the sector supported borrowers, the State, and the economy during the pandemic.
According to Kammas, in 2020, banks provided new loans totalling €2.4 billion and €1.3 billion in the first half of 2021.
“The new lending significantly strengthens the recovery of the Cypriot economy in a particularly difficult period.”
Capital needs, in particular, full compliance with Basel III requirements, the transition of economies and societies – at the European level – to the era of sustainable development, digital transformation and implementation of the Green Agenda, the intensifying supervisory framework, which demands close cooperation between banks and governments and strengthening digital services along with security and efficiency of transactions.
Construction activity has made a strong recovery from the impact of the COVID-19 containment measures in 2020, with the number of building permits authorised during the first half of 2020 exceeding those issued in the same period in pre-COVID 2019 according to the Cyprus Statistical Service.
During the first half of 2021, 3,990 building permits were authorised compared with 3,153 in the first half of 2020; an increase of 26.5%. The value of these permits rose by 20.5% to reach €1.34 billion, while their total area rose by 31.0% to reach 1.23 million square metres and provided for the construction of 5,412 new homes.
The figures published for June 2021 show that a total of 833 building permits were authorised during the month; an increase of 15.1% from the number authorised in June 2020. Their value rose to €270.4 million and their area rose to 263.7 thousand square metres and provided for the construction of 998 new homes (dwelling units).
The 833 building permits were authorised for the following:
Residential buildings – 594
Non-residential buildings – 134
Civil engineering projects – 32
Division of plots of land – 55
Road construction – 18
New home construction
The 594 residential building permits provided for the construction of 998 new homes, comprising:
Single houses – 381
Buildings comprising 2 units – 120
Residential apartment blocks – 486
Residential/commercial apartment blocks – 11
Of those 998 new homes, 267 are destined for Nicosia, 239 for Limassol, 226 for Larnaca, 184 for Paphos and 82 for Famagusta.
Building Permits Issued for the Construction of New Homes
(Number of Dwellings)
The Cyprus Statistical Service notes that “Prices of materials used in construction are collected on a monthly basis based on a sample of products and suppliers. The reference date for the prices collected is the 15th each month. Prices are valued excluding VAT. The data collection is carried out by telephone, fax or e-mail. Prices of materials are based on actual prices rather than list prices.”
