England triumph over India to take top spot in Cricket rankings

2011-08-13

England surged to the top of the world rankings after crushing India by an innings and 242 runs in the third test on Saturday to secure their sixth consecutive series win.

Fast bowler James Anderson claimed four for 85 as India were dismissed for 244 after lunch on the fourth day at Edgbaston, giving the home team a 3-0 lead in the four-match series.

India’s batsmen capitulated for the third successive match against England’s penetrative attack.

Captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni was India’s top scorer for the second time in the test, with 74 not out, but the game was over when Shanthakumaran Sreesanth edged Tim Bresnan to Kevin Pietersen in the gully.

Our View: Prevention rather than cure should be the focus in Paphos touts war

2011-08-13

EVERY YEAR Paphos announces that it’s gearing up to deal with holiday and timeshare touts and every year nothing seems to work. Tougher penalties and an increased police presence were in the pipeline for this year. These included increasing the fines to €1,500 and providing for six months in prison, to two additional phone lines for people to report incidents.

Apparently even this is not working.  Timeshare touts are a blot on the tourist landscape, especially in Paphos where the demographic apparently fulfills their requirements.

S&P puts Cyprus on notice for new downgrade

2011-08-13

STANDARD & Poor’s yesterday said it may cut the sovereign credit rating for Cyprus, citing its belief the government’s fiscal position is no longer sustainable.

“Due to the departure of the junior coalition party, DIKO, the Cypriot government is, in our opinion, in a weaker position to pass emergency budgetary measures through parliament,” S&P said in a statement.

S&P placed Cyprus on what it calls CreditWatch with a negative implications.

Cyprus is rated BBB-plus by S&P, three notches above junk status. . Moody’s Investors Service downgraded Cyprus on July 27 to Baa1, bringing it equal to S&P’s current rating. Fitch Ratings cut Cyprus to BBB on August 10, one notch below its rivals.

DISY: raise retirement age to 65

2011-08-13

MAIN opposition DISY yesterday proposed extending the age of retirement for civil servants to 65 in a bid to secure the viability of the social insurance fund and resolve problems with the state pensions system.

Opposition parties have described a €750 million government austerity package as being inadequate and are expected to submit their own proposals when the measures are discussed in the Plenum on August 25.

Unions have already warned that any unilateral actions would be strongly opposed.

“Through this proposal we are essentially trying to secure the viability of the pension fund, which faces significant problems and has been justly described as a time-bomb for the country’s economy,” DISY MP Ionas Nicolaou.

Six bills submitted to parliament to cover package provisions

2011-08-13

The government yesterday submitted to parliament six bills as part of an austerity package announced earlier this week:

* Increase in tax on interest rates from bank deposits from 10 to 15 per cent and an increase in tax on dividends from 15 to 17 per cent. The measure is expected to fetch €65 million per year

* Increase in income tax on income exceeding €60,000 per year from 30 to 35 per cent. Expected revenue €5.0 million

Now SEC has fine thrown out over hiring procedures

2011-08-13

THE CYPRUS Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) was yesterday told by the Supreme Court that they were not entitled to fine Aspis Holdings because SEC members had not been hired according to correct procedures.

The Supreme Court Judge said that the positions were not advertised properly because there was no mention the required qualifications.

Furthermore, there was no explanation of how the hired members met the legal requirements for the posts, Court ruled.

The SEC had issued in 2009 an €80,000 fine to Aspis Holdings Public Company and took measures against Aspis for financial market violations.

Aspis Holdings argued however that the Commission’s members lacked the experience and training to be qualified to issue the fine.

Polyviou has not ruled out summoning Christofias

2011-08-13

 

THE investigator tasked with looking into the July 11 naval base blast that killed 13 and incapacitated the main power station has not ruled out summoning President Demetris Christofias to testify if necessary.

Lawyer Polys Polyviou also revealed that among the thousands of case-related documents in his possession, there were a few discrepancies.

Polyviou has been appointed by the cabinet to investigate whether any state or other officials can be held responsible for the blast at the Evangelos Florakis base that caused an energy crisis and amplified the island’s economic problems.

Polyviou’s inquiry runs simultaneously with a police investigation into possible criminal offences related with the incident.

AKEL takes issue with Defence Committee’s final text of blast report

2011-08-13

ALL PARTIES minus ruling AKEL yesterday voted in favour of the House Defence Committee’s final version of the report on the July 11 naval base blast which killed 13 and knocked out the island’s main Power Station at Vassilikos.

AKEL MPs wanted corrections on certain points on political responsibility – “some were accepted… but some were not,” the Committee’s president Giorgios Varnava told journalists after the session.

AKEL MPs have until August 22 to submit their own views, which will be added to the report, Varnava said.

“We have avoided identifying anyone through the report because we don’t want (it) to be used… by someone who might be facing criminal charges,” Varnava said referring to the police’s ongoing criminal inquiry.

Ex ministers opt for €50,000 sum, and reduced pension

2011-08-13

THE SIX ministers who recently stepped down from office will receive a lump sum of €50,000 and a reduced pension for their service to the government.

The six, who include former ministers of Defence Costas Papacostas, Foreign Affairs Marcos Kyprianou, Commerce Antonis Paschalides, Education Andreas Demetriou, Finance Charilaos Stavrakis and Health Christos Patsalides, opted for the tax-free payout and reduced pension over a full pension as was their legal right.

The money will come from the Finance Ministry’s Treasury Department and was calculated on the term served by the six which almost amounted to 42 months. Had the ministers served less than 30 months the lump sum would have been significantly lower, according to reports.

Rural fires up 25 per cent

2011-08-13

THE FIRE service yesterday reported a 25 per cent increase in rural fires compared to a year ago, with more than 200 across the island in July fuelling concerns over rampant arson in the fields.

According to fire service spokeswoman Lisa Kemidji, the worst affected areas were in areas of scrubland near Paphos and Limassol, and the service believes that they are being deliberately targeted.

One square km of land has been destroyed and €4.1 million worth of damage sustained in fires so far this year.

The Cyprus Mail is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Cyprus. It was established in 1945 and today, with its popular and widely-read website, the Cyprus Mail is among the most trusted news sites in Cyprus. The newspaper is not affiliated with any political parties and has always striven to maintain its independence. Over the past 70-plus years, the Cyprus Mail, with a small dedicated team, has covered momentous events in Cyprus’ modern history, chronicling the last gasps of British colonial rule, Cyprus’ truncated independence, the coup and Turkish invasion, and the decades of negotiations to stitch the divided island back together, plus a myriad of scandals, murders, and human interests stories that capture the island and its -people. Observers describe it as politically conservative.