Fotini Pipili during an interview to a radio station said that she is not going to vote the “bill-monster”, as she described it. It should be noted that the bill on the regulation of the seaside areas is the fourth in eleven years.

Mrs Pipili said that “no bumpkin has the right to destroy the beach”. What made Mrs Pipili, though, so furious about that bill, seems to be the provision that provides the reduction of restrictions on the granting of seaside to municipalities or individuals and the legalisation of unauthorised buildings used for business purposes .

Those that are against of this bill are not convinced by the government’s argument that this is a bill to be submitted after European elections and it is open to public debate.

What does the bill provide

The 25-pages bill entitled “Marking , management and protection of seaside and beach” provides the abolition of the restriction of 500 sq.m which currently applies for areas granted for normal use (e.g. sunbends, buffets) and the requirement of creating free “zones” of 100 meters.

At the same time all references to the obligation of having a free and unimpeded access road to the beach and seaside are deleted and the only restriction is set forth as: “to include terms and conditions ensuring public access, after a reasoned balancing of interests served or harmed.”

Also, the bill assigns the power to the general secretary of the Decentralized Administration to decide whether a permanent structure owned by individuals “are necessary for achieving the [ business ] purpose”. This provision is believed to give the right to all coastal hotel units of the country to permanently expand their facilities in the area from the beach to the sea.

The bill also regulates the settling down of the unauthorised buildings located on the seaside and beach for business purposes. This is something that has not been provided until now by none of the two laws on legalisation of unauthorised buildings as it goes against the constitution.