DEPUTIES were last night locked in debate over the contentious National Health Scheme (ESY) as the final, all-day, session of the current House of Representatives plenum dragged on past midnight.
The plenum was expected to eventually approve the ESY, but deputies were still slugging it out over last minute amendments proposed by main opposition party AKEL at 00.30 this morning.
Deputies had left the debate on the government-proposed universal health plan, the most contentious of the 90 bills on yesterday’s agenda, till last. The relevant debate began just after 8pm but deputies appeared unwilling to approve such a controversial bill in the absence of unanimity.
The scheme was backed by governing parties DISY and the United Democrats and by opposition party KISOS. DIKO were against, while AKEL were believed to be making their approval conditional on adoption of their amendments.
The ESY, which has been in the pipeline for over a decade, was vehemently opposed by civil servants’ union PASYDY and other unions, which feared it would strip them of benefits they enjoy under their own schemes. A series of government compromises over the past few weeks eventually convinced the unions to drop most of their objections.
Under the government plan, all employees will contribute two per cent of their wages to the scheme. The employer will contribute a further 2.55 per cent and 4.5 per cent will be footed by the state. The government will not take any public contributions to the scheme until it is ready to deliver services, in approximately five years’ time.
Earlier yesterday afternoon, deputies unanimously approved a bill changing shop hours. The new law will mean shops closing at 8.30pm in the summer and 7pm in the winter on weekdays, and at 5pm on Saturdays in the summer and 3pm in the winter. Wednesday closing will remain at 2pm in summer and winter. Afternoon closing will be from 2-5pm in the summer, from June 15 to the end of August.
The plenum also approved a bill granting political parties a £1 million subsidy each. Deputies also unanimously approved a law establishing a new post of Controller of telecommunications and postal services, an EU harmonisation measure seen as a precursor to liberalising the two sectors.
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