A little unfair

"It is time they understood that Brussels is another Nicosia and that the European Commission is our government, from which we should not keep secrets."

Loucas Charalambous, writing in the Cyprus Mail about his own government, after the Commission had intervened over the award of a public works contract.

Charalambous also observes that the outraged response of the government to the intervention proves two things: first, the fathomless hypocrisy which dominates political life; second, that a year after Cyprus' accession, the politicians still do not know what the EU is about.

Mr Charalambous is perhaps being a little unfair. Thirty years after British accession and most of our politicians still do not know what the EU is about. As for hypocrisy, that goes with the territory.