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President Nicos Anastasiades yesterday criticized MPs over a proposal by EDEK to postpone the House Plenary vote on the insolvency framework, originally scheduled for 17 April.

Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, Anastasiades said he was disappointed in the conspiracy theories that have emerged, and said that it is as if we are talking about a bill that relates to political party gain and no one realises that the effort to scrap the legislation, which he said fully secures the rights of vulnerable groups, ends up hurting Cyprus. Anastasiades attacked the notion that a vote by the Plenary could be postponed on the grounds of absent deputies, as it would open the door to endless politicking, and called for “a little more seriousness is required by everyone.”

Repeated postponements in the implementation of the foreclosures bill, linked to the insolvency framework, since its approval in December 2014, have caused delays in the implementation of the Cyprus Memorandum and the disbursement of aid from the Troika. The suspension of the foreclosures bill was scheduled to end on 17 April.

Anastasiades was accused of taking a trip to Athens on the day so as to prevent House of Representatives Speaker Yiannakis Omirou – which will be acting President – from voting and tilting the balance in favour of approval of the legislations. As things stand, according to an informal count of MPs intention, the vote would be tied with 28 MPs on each side. Socialist EDEK responded to what it saw as an unfair move with calls to postpone the House vote until Anastasiades’ return.