The Presidential Council

The composition of the six-member Presidential Council will reflect the population balance on the island, but at least two members of the Council must come from each constituent state. With the current population sizes, four members will be from the Greek Cypriot and two from the Turkish Cypriot constituent state.

The Presidential Council will try to take all decisions unanimously. If this cannot be achieved, decisions will be taken by simple majority. Such a majority should in every case include at least one member from each constituent state. The President and Vice President will not have a casting vote.

Election of the Presidential Council
The Presidential Council will be elected by the legislature. The procedure for the election is stipulated in the proposed Constitution of the United Republic of Cyprus. The election of the council will be conducted in two stages.

First stage: Members of the Senate will vote by special majority from a single list of candidates. Each list will consist of six names – four from the Greek Cypriot constituent state and two from the Turkish Cypriot constituent state.

The list must receive 50 per cent plus one vote – 24 plus 1 – from the senate, on condition that it also receives 40 per cent of the vote of the senators of each constituent state (special majority).

Second stage: Members of the House of Representatives will approve the senate’s choice by simple majority.

The six candidates elected will make up the Presidential Council. Members of the Council will be elected for five years and must not hold any other public office or private position.

The presidential council will be the Head of State and will exercise executive authority. The six members will be equal and anyone can table an issue for discussion on the council’s agenda. Each member of the council will head a ministry, which will be allocated by a council decision. The head of the Foreign Affairs ministry and the ministry of European Union Affairs will not come from the same constituent state. The heads of the ministries will draft and execute the decisions of the Presidential Council concerning their ministry.

Since the Office of Head of State will be held collectively by the Presidential Council, why is there reference to a rotating presidency?

This is because the Office of President and Vice President will rotate between members of the Council every ten months. Members of the Council will assume these positions based on time spent in the Council since last serving in either office. In cases where some have been members of the Council for equal periods of time without having assumed any of the two offices, they will agree to observe an order of priority, otherwise a lot shall be drawn. The President and Vice President will not come from the same constituent state. Not more than two successive presidents will come from the same constituent state.

What are the duties of the President and the Vice President of the Presidential Council?

The President of the Council will represent the Presidential Council as the Head of State in official functions, sign and receive the credentials of diplomatic missions and confer the honours of the United Republic of Cyprus. The President will represent the Republic at meetings of Heads of Government, unless the Council designates another member. The Vice President will assume the duties of the president in his absence or in case of temporary incapacity of the President.

What are the duties of the Presidential Council?
The Presidential Council will appoint the members of the judiciary and the independent officers: the Supreme Court judges, the Governor and Board of the Central Bank, the Attorney-general and Deputy Attorney-general, the Auditor-general and Deputy Auditor-general. It will also suggest candidates or appoint members to the European Union and international bodies.

The heads of the ministries will prepare and execute decisions of the Presidential Council concerning their ministry.

The head of the ministry of European Union Affairs will represent the Presidential Council – when functioning as head of government – in meetings of the European Council and will be assisted by the head of the Foreign Affairs ministry. The heads of the relevant ministries will represent the United Republic of Cyprus at meetings of government ministers. In cases where an international conference is dealing with issues concerning vital interests of one constituent state and the Council representative comes from the other constituent state, the Council can appoint a member from that constituent state to accompany the representative of the Council. The representative of the Republic in international meetings will be bound by the decisions of the Presidential Council.

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.