Missing permit raises questions over Lakkotrypis’ post-ministerial roles

A confidential document has cast new doubt on the effectiveness of Cyprus’ oversight system for former ministers entering the private sector, after revealing that an authorisation granted to former energy minister Giorgos Lakkotrypis does not appear in Parliament’s records.

According to local media sources, the document confirms that Lakkotrypis received approval in July 2021 from the legally mandated three-member committee to serve as a member on the board of ElvalHalcor, a Greek copper and aluminium company.

Yet no trace of this approval exists in the parliamentary archives, despite an explicit legal obligation for the House to be informed in writing.

The discrepancy was brought to light during parliamentary scrutiny of Lakkotrypis’ post-ministerial activities, intensified following the release of a covertly recorded video alleging purchasable patronage to the Presidential Palace.

Akel MP Irene Charalambides said earlier this week that parliament holds records for only eight permits issued to Lakkotrypis during the two-year hiatus period after he left office in July 2020.

“The data is inconsistent,” she had said, adding that said permit linked to ElvalHalcor could not be located.

“Either Parliament was never informed, or the licence was never requested. Both scenarios raise serious issues.”

The confidential document apparently clarifies that uncertainty: parliament was never informed.

Signed by the then members of the committee, including a representative of the legal service, the audit office and the treasury, the application was indeed approved after consideration of a letter from then energy ministry’s permanent secretary Marios Panayides.

Under the 2007 law governing post-service employment, former ministers are barred from private sector roles linked to their portfolio for two years unless they secure permission from the independent committee.

The law also requires that all decisions, approvals or rejections be formally communicated to the president, the House president and the attorney-general.

Sources familiar with the committee’s procedures said decisions are always dispatched with a receipt form, ensuring proof of delivery.

That has sharpened questions over how the ElvalHalcor approval failed to reach Parliament, or why it is missing from the archives.

Parliament’s deputy director, Andreas Christodoulou, who assumed his post only in November, said the disputed documents were requested and forwarded last week.

“I cannot speak for what preceded my tenure,” he said, pledging that procedures would be followed strictly going forward.

According to information available to the Cyprus Mail, Lakkotrypis submitted at least 10 applications for private sector work between July 2020 and July 2022, covering board memberships and consultancy roles.

Parliamentary records reflect only eight.

The ElvalHalcor permit, approved on July 7 2021, falls within the gap.

The company announced five days later that Lakkotrypis had joined its board as a temporary independent member.

MPs have questioned whether sufficient due diligence was exercised, given the group’s exposure to energy-related costs and infrastructure.

Charalambides has written to the police chief, the tax commissioner and the independent criminal investigator requesting further probes.

“It cannot be that the law is clear and parliament is left in the dark,” she said.

The missing permit has become a focal point in the debate on an apparent “revolving door” between government and business.

MPs across parties have warned that gaps in oversight risk undermining public trust, particularly as criminal, tax and lobbying investigations linked to the video scandal continue.