Cyprus needs to wake up to rising prices

Sir,

I read with interest the letter from Brian Green, of Ross-on-Wye about the high cost of food.
Having just spent three weeks in Paphos I must agree with him, although the fact that the pound sterling now equates to the euro is not the fault of Cyprus, but of Great Britain.
For years now, Cyprus goods have been more expensive than those in the UK; the exchange rate has produced as much as a 40% increase.

My oil-filled 2.5kw radiator had to be replaced – current price in Cyprus €69 euro, B&Q price UK£27. I realise that many products have to be shipped in and as such will therefore have a premium, but there is a clear case of exploitation, not just of expats but also of Cypriots.
The developers who have had a field day in Paphos over the past 10 years will now surely need to look elsewhere to cover the land in concrete.

Brits will now be seeking the sun outside of the eurozone and with the devaluation of the rouble, the average Russian too will be thinking twice before purchasing a two-bed/bath apartment with communal pool.

The Spanish have at last woken up and realised their building boom is well and truly over and so too it must surely be for the Cypriots.

Michael Strand,
Leicester, UK