AKEL and ELAM deadlock parliament’s Selection Committee over Environment chairmanship

Politics parliament AKEL and ELAM deadlock parliament’s Selection Committee over Environment chairmanship Akel And Elam Deadlock Parliament's Selection Committee Over Environment Chairmanship Relevant News AKEL and ELAM deadlock parliament’s Selection Committee over Environment chairmanship 12 June 2026 Weekends and public holidays count towards parental leave, department clarifies 12 June 2026 Anti-Corruption Authority report on ‘Mafia State’ allegations due Tuesday 12 June 2026 Andreas Bimbishis 12 June 2026 FacebookXWhatsAppEmailPrintViber Cyprus parliament’s Selection Committee deadlocked on its first session Thursday as AKEL and ELAM both staked claims to the chairmanship of the Environment Committee, with talks set to resume Friday morning at 10am. According to sources familiar with the discussions who spoke to Phileleftheros, the dispute over the Environment Committee brought negotiations to a standstill. AKEL considers the committee its own, having held it in previous years before ceding it to the Ecologists and MP Theopemtou. With the new parliamentary term, the party believes it should return to them. ELAM’s position is that the Environment Committee was among those left without a holder following the May elections, as the parties that previously held it — along with the Defence and Transport committees — failed to enter parliament. The party therefore believes it is entitled to claim it. Beyond the dispute over the Environment Committee, some parties have also expressed reservations about ELAM taking the chairmanship of the Defence Committee. AKEL’s parliamentary spokesman Giorgos Loukaides made clear at the plenary session that his party objects in principle to ELAM chairing any parliamentary committee, and asked for this objection to be recorded in the minutes. DIKO chairmanships in dispute A separate dispute has emerged over the number of committee chairmanships due to DIKO. According to Phileleftheros’s information, some parties are pushing the argument that DIKO is entitled to only two chairmanships, suggesting the party is receiving a third with DISY’s agreement as part of the deal to support Annita Demetriou’s election as Speaker. DIKO leader Nikolas Papadopoulos rejects this, insisting his party is entitled to three chairmanships, the same number it held during the previous parliamentary term. Committee numbers and composition The parties also remain divided on the total number of committees. Proposals range from 11 — matching the number of ministries — to 16, the current number. Some parties favour merging the Human Rights Committee with the Institutions Committee. A proposal has also been tabled for committees to have 12 members in total, four from each party. Most members of the Selection Committee appear to favour retaining 16 committees, as a reduction to 15 would create additional complications, according to Phileleftheros’s information. Deadline and next steps The Selection Committee will hold a further session Friday at 10am, aiming to reach final decisions. Committee chairmanships and compositions must be ready before the next plenary, scheduled for June 18, for approval by parliament. The target is for the new committees to begin legislative work from Monday, June 22. Plenary appointments Thursday’s brief plenary session confirmed several appointments. DISY MP Nikoleta Constantinou and AKEL MP Anastasia Hassikou were appointed as parliamentary secretaries, and ELAM MP Marios Pelekanos as sergeant-at-arms. The acting Speaker announced the parliamentary spokespersons: Dimitris Dimitriou for DISY, Giorgos Loukaides for AKEL, Sotiris Ioannou for ELAM and Panikos Leonidou for DIKO. The Selection Committee was confirmed as comprising three DISY MPs — Dimitris Dimitriou, Giorgos Karoullas and Savia Orfanidou — and three AKEL MPs — Stefanos Stefanou, Giorgos Loukaides and Aristos Damianou — along with one MP each from DIKO (Panikos Leonidou) and ELAM (Linos Papayiannis). The composition was approved by 50 votes. Speaker Annita Demetriou will participate ex officio. Alma leader Odysseas Michailides put forward his candidacy for the Selection Committee, arguing that neither the Constitution nor parliamentary rules exclude parties with fewer than seven MPs. The proposal was not accepted. DISY parliamentary spokesman Dimitris Dimitriou said the question of broader participation could have been raised, but not at the last moment when an agreement between the parties had already been formed. AKEL also noted that Alma and Direct Democracy Cyprus had the right to submit candidacies for the Selection Committee, but this too was not accepted by the parties involved in the consultations. Subscribe to our Newsletter Latest News Weekends and public holidays count towards parental leave, department clarifies Anti-Corruption Authority report on ‘Mafia State’ allegations due Tuesday Cyprus drops nine places in 2026 Global Peace Index Police investigate kidnapping of foreign student in Larnaca Cyprus, Greece, Israel and US agree energy cooperation roadmap at Houston talks Cyprus Hamas suspect bought explosives materials, photographed targets and recruited physics teacher, court told Cyprus finally gets its first crematorium — 25 years in the making Follow en.philenews on Google News and be the first to know all the news about Cyprus and the world.