Opinion
By Michalis Sophocleous
The other day, I watched Britain’s growth minister, Dan Tomlinson, give an outstanding interview on Sky News. Without warning, the journalist Ed Conway kept putting charts in front of him, on everything from public debt and social support measures to regional development. Tomlinson explained his government’s economic policy, using the figures and spelling out the thinking behind it. I may disagree with some of Labour’s policies, but those eight minutes were a tribute to democracy and accountability.
In the United States, the midterm election debate is almost entirely about the cost of living, inflation, the war in Iran and artificial intelligence, now that the feverish arguments over immigration and the “woke” agenda have died down. In Australia, Finance Minister Katy Gallagher is in serious political trouble after failing to defend her government’s economic policy in Parliament. There are dozens of examples from this week alone.
Nothing will change...as long as public debate consists of gossip, prying into private lives and nursing grudges....(and without) politicians and journalists willing to help build a better country.
Chris Zambas shared the Tomlinson interview on X and asked two pointed questions. “Are there journalists in Cyprus who could explain the state of the economy that simply? Are there politicians in Cyprus who could hold their own, without any preparation, and explain what the government is trying to do?” The honest answer is no. There are a handful who could, and fewer still who bother anymore.
Here in Cyprus, Parliament was debating the education budget that same week. Education is our greatest national failure. Some 45% of our children leave school functionally illiterate, and the cost of schooling and private tutoring brings the average family to its knees. It takes a toll on the daily lives of parents and children and, by extension, on all of us. Meanwhile, the three teachers’ unions, POED, OELMEK and OLTEK, asked to meet the president over the teacher appointment system. They threatened to step up their action to keep the old appointment list in place, despite agreeing 10 years ago that it would be phased out.
The education minister presented a €1.699 billion budget for 2027, up 5% from last year. Cyprus already devotes the fifth-largest share of public spending to education in Europe. Adjusted for purchasing power, our teachers are among the three best-paid in Europe. So what’s the problem? We get the worst results, and that barely figures in the public debate. The minister herself admits we can hardly expect improvement without major changes. Well, then, whose job is it to make those changes?
Let’s start with the figures in the budget itself. There’s an extra €88.9 million for 2027. About two-thirds of it, €60.1 million, goes toward payroll, covering new posts, pay increments and cost-of-living adjustments. Across primary, secondary and technical education, roughly 80 cents of every euro goes to payroll. That leaves 20 cents for everything else, from books and labs to air conditioning and support programs. So where’s the money for education reform? How seriously can we claim to want change when the country’s plans set aside so much as a cent for it?
Can you imagine Cyprus’ education minister in a television studio, looking at a chart with a PISA score of 379 on one side and 13.2% of our public spending on the other? Can you imagine her being asked to explain that dismal record? I doubt it. Neither can I.
Hardly anyone will have that conversation in public. The same goes for energy, runaway inflation, the justice system, housing and even the Cyprus problem. Nobody will face enough public pressure or scrutiny to have to see a reform through. And nobody is willing anymore to put their head on the line, lead the charge for change and take responsibility for it. Anyone who “dares” to upset the way things work will be chewed up by the political and media establishment, and the public itself will send them packing.
Nothing will change in Cyprus as long as public debate consists of gossip, prying into private lives and nursing grudges, and public office is treated as another rung on the career ladder. Nothing will change as long as we lack politicians and journalists willing to help build a better country.
