The Chair of the House Finance Committee and Deputy President of DIKO, Christiana Erotokritou, has called for a clear political commitment that no measures will be taken to collect legal costs from citizens who went to court following the 2013 haircut. The Attorney General's Office and the Central Bank told the Committee that, to date, they have not taken measures to collect the amounts awarded against litigants.
Ms Erotokritou said the Finance Committee and DIKO had asked the Finance Ministry for this practice to be backed by a political commitment, and that the ministry's response is awaited.
Legal costs for haircut litigants
The request concerns citizens who sought justice after the 2013 haircut and either lost their cases or withdrew them, having already suffered financial and legal hardship.
Restoring the haircut provident funds
Speaking after the Committee meeting, Ms Erotokritou said DIKO was also closely monitoring the implementation of the recent agreement to restore the haircut provident funds. The agreement concerns 845 employees of the Bank of Cyprus and Laiki Bank, as well as their families.
She expressed satisfaction at the prospect of resolving the issue, which she said arose from the erroneous 2017 decision to place employees under different regimes, with different treatment before and after 2017.
According to the Finance Ministry, the agreement recently reached between the parties involved is expected to be implemented within 2026. The Finance Committee will monitor its implementation and await the official announcement of its completion, so that the pending issue can be brought to an end.
The National Solidarity Fund
The meeting also examined the budget of the National Solidarity Fund and related ex officio matters registered by the Committee and the political parties represented on it.
Ms Erotokritou highlighted the importance of the Fund as a mechanism for providing relief and partially compensating depositors and holders of securities for their losses. She noted that, from 2023 onwards, the Fund has been endowed with money that can be paid directly to beneficiaries.
According to information provided to the Committee, approximately 7,000 depositors and holders of securities have already received the amounts due to them, as part of the allocation of €100 million from the Fund.
The Finance Ministry also informed the Committee that a new endowment of €50 million is expected in the 2027 budget, which the Committee will examine once it is submitted by the government.
Transfer of property to the Fund
On the transfer of immovable property to the Fund, Ms Erotokritou described the policy as correct, despite the constitutional obstacles to transferring the properties that existed from the outset.
She added that even if the transfer had been completed, the properties could not have been liquidated immediately or within a very short period so that money could be paid to beneficiaries.
