Cyprus MPs Block Release of €146,000 for Traffic Fine‑Matching Software

In a House finance committee session on Monday, Cypriot lawmakers rejected the government's request to release €146,000 earmarked for a software application that matches ID cards with unpaid traffic fines at checkpoints. The company that operates the traffic camera system says the Photo Radar List software is finished and ready for deployment, but opposition MPs demanded a detailed appraisal of why 180,000 fines remain unserved and why the system would only target Turkish Cypriot vehicles. They argued that cameras should not be used as a tax‑collection tool and cited the 16,000 unpaid fines affecting Turkish Cypriot drivers. The budget bill approved the amount conditionally, requiring the government to justify the release. The finance committee will revisit the issue next week.