The proposal / bill of the Ministry of Interior, which lays the foundations, for the restructuring of the Local Self-Government in the next decades, was approved by the Council of Ministers at its today's session.
Speaking to reporters at the Presidential Palace after the cabinet meeting, Interior Minister Socrates Hasikos said: "It is an issue that has plagued the Republic for many years, it has passed through the Troika and it is completely acceptable and it takes the "According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs," there was a consultation with all parties, which lasted two years, with all stakeholders, representatives of Municipalities, Communities ", adding that" everyone was involved ". He expressed the assessment that the necessary consensus from all interested parties ", noting that" this consensus is reflected in the bill. "The Parliament wished, after it will open, to discuss it and before the end of the year to have voted, so that it enters now in the implementation process. ”What will we gain from this? Savings, which will be to the benefit of the taxpayer. All the money saved should go to better services. The other thing that we will achieve through the bill, is the concentration of services to the citizen in a specific place, such as the provincial complex, where urban and building permits will be issued from there ", said Mr. Hasikos. The government, in turn, will give knowledge and experience to these new bodies that will issue the licenses. ”At the same time, he noted that the unified taxation has passed through the Council of Ministers, with which the Local Government will no longer have to pay taxes. Local government on the one hand and the central state on the other. ”All this will be done by the Local Government and in this way another requested permanent request of the TA for autonomy is achieved. "With this money, which will be collected from the real estate tax, which is over 100 million, they lay the foundation for autonomy", he added. Asked if the Municipalities will be reduced, Mr. Hasikos said: "The Municipalities will not be reduced , nor will the Community Councils be reduced. They remain the same. The number of members of the Councils is drastically reduced, that is, this army of municipal councilors that we had per Municipality, will disappear. There are many savings. ”Answering a question whether the Municipal Elections will be held next year in December, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that“ the Municipal Elections are scheduled according to the law and remain ”, to add that if the Parliament in its wisdom wants to move them, so that they coincide with the Parliamentary Elections is her right ". Source: KYPE