Galanos may depart from SOE

Alexis Galanos, former President of the House and Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisors (SOE), may resign from his post now that the work of the Council has been acknowledged and its role upgraded.

The 14-member Council, which was set up by President Tassos Papadopoulos soon after his election and reports directly to him on economic matters, initially met a hostile reception from various government ministries and departments and its role was undermined as it was seen as a “competitor” set up to undermine the “establishment.”

Resistance to the Council has declined recently through the careful steering tactics of Galanos and as people realised that the Council was in effect a think-thank, working to help the country and make the economy stronger.

One of the greatest achievements of the Council is its intense lobbying for the immediate implementation of the tax amnesty scheme, which eventually netted CYP 119 mln in extra revenue for the state, which will go a long way in allowing Cyprus to meet one of most important criteria of the EU Growth & Stability Pact (Maastricht).

Recognising the achievements of the Council and its future role, the government recently decided to upgrade the role of the SOE, by providing new permanent offices in Nicosia (Dem. Severis/opp. Lefkoniko) and permanent staff as well as the promise that it will be allowed increased access to state statistical data as soon as these are released, needed for the think-thank to analyse data and set strategy.

With the government finally acknowledging the role of the SOE and following its new status, Galanos is seen resigning from the post now that his initial objective has been realised.