The letter from the General Secretary of the AKEL Central Committee, Stefanos Stefanou, regarding the legislative processing of a bill proposal for taxing unexpected bank profits, has been submitted to the Parliament.
This move aims to support those who have seen their loan installments skyrocket due to successive interest rate hikes, as stated.
According to a related announcement, “since the government shows no inclination to act on the issue of accuracy and interest rates, AKEL proceeds, as we had declared, with our own initiative in Parliament to provide tangible solutions to alleviate society’s burdens.
The proposal by AKEL envisages imposing a special levy of 5% on net interest income for the years 2023 and 2024, while simultaneously introducing safeguards to prevent the burden from being shifted to borrowers.
The expected revenue amounts to approximately €50 million per year, which will be directed to a special fund to finance interest subsidies for housing loans of middle and low-income borrowers.
AKEL contends that the government underestimates the pressure caused on households and small businesses by interest rate hikes, which, on the other hand, resulted in unexpected profits for banks exceeding €1.1 billion just for 2023.
“The state must intervene decisively to return at least a portion of these profits to society, and this, as proven, will not be achieved through government pleas to the banks. AKEL’s proposal will provide a solution and real relief to thousands of households and small businesses,” it concludes.
