A COLLEAGUE wrote immediately after last Tuesday’s ‘No’ vote at the House of Reps, “It’s not over until the fat lady sings.” But it was over before she even dragged herself on stage. The colleague added that the House of Reps ‘No’ vote was ‘just for show’. But in reality it was to pacify small depositors and keep Russian money here, in no way removing fears of what is about to happen to the average family. ... 13 comments

THE STATE is losing millions of euro in revenue due to increased passenger traffic at Tymbou (Ercan) airport in the occupied north, according to reports. Phileleftheros yesterday reported that the state lost €12m in revenue last year due to an agreement with Hermes Airports which ties the amount owed to the state by the airports operator to the increase in passenger traffic at the illegal airport in the north. According to the local daily, the agreement signed between Hermes and the state in 2006 includes a provision relating to a possible increase in traffic at Tymbou, where if the number of passenger arrivals at the airport in the north exceeds one million, Hermes gets something of a subsidy per passenger, reducing its final contribution to state coffers. ... 23 comments