Coronavirus: local authorities say in dire financial straits 

The union of municipalities warned Friday they were in dire financial straits, and appealed to the government for assistance, as the second lockdown was expected to make things even worse.

Following a teleconference, the union said unlike the rest of the EU, Cyprus has not afforded any assistance to local authorities to help with the fallout from the pandemic.

The union said the second lockdown was expected to “dramatically” worsen the municipalities’ finances, as it would be impossible for them to collect a large share of the revenue they had budgeted.

“It is expected that the emergency situation we are going through will extend into the first months of 2021, with all that entails,” a union statement said.

The union added that as opposed to the state, they had no access to funding facilities because of the pandemic and proposed that the government allocated the €6m set aside for them.

It also asked for further assistance in the next year and finding ways for the to borrow in a bid to deal with their cashflow problems and avoid default.

 

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.