New local government to be ‘trimmed and upgraded’

Legislative changes to local government reform are to be discussed in September, after a two-month trial period to determine the reform’s exact financial and logistical outputs, Interior Minister Constantinos Ioannou said on Tuesday.

Speaking to CyBC radio on the second day of the new administrative structure’s operation, the minister said the first improvements to be discussed will have to do with reducing the number of deputy mayors and finding ways to fill a €12million gap in financing the district organisations (EOAs).

“What we have is better than what preceded it, but it is not the ideal,” Ioannou reiterated.

The number of deputy mayors, which currently stands at 93 and in some community clusters totals 14 and 17, is excessive, the minister said, particularly since they do not have any duties other than those to be delegated to them by mayors.

This flies against the principle of trimming down the system, the minister said. He added the caveat that the decision for these numbers had been taken in 2022 but refused to be drawn into assigning blame.

“The goal is an ongoing upgrading as the concrete realities [of the re-structuring] emerge. Everyone is willing to improve,” the minister said.

Under the current agreement it had been decided that 60 per cent of revenues secured by the EOAs will be channelled to the municipalities. However, the granting of permits would have to be increased by two-and-a-half times for the EOAs to cover their costs, Ioannou said.

Total revenues from permitting is currently estimated at €20 million which leaves a €12million gap, he said.

Despite the fact that this is to be initially provided for by tax-payer money through the state for 2025, it is expected that a vastly expedited permitting process will act as a development incentive, increasing the demand for permits, and in turn boosting the EOAs long term revenues.

Legislative changes to be considered in September, may include changing the 60 per cent earmarked for the municipalities to a set amount in future, the minister hinted.

Among the re-structuring’s most promising successes are the fact that 70 more personnel have been hired towards speeding up permitting, which previously suffered long delays due to understaffing, Ioannou said.

Other critical changes include that the various district organisations now follow an identical streamlined approach for issuing permits, and that village clusters now work in prescribed teams, which include specialised staff, such as a civil engineer or architect and a public sanitation expert.