The stagnation in our tourism industry seems to have become so endemic that whatever measures the present government takes do not seem to bear good results. I will not enter into the merit as to who is to blame for the present situation. After all, operators in this industry know why we are in the present situation.

Luckily, in a few months’ time the Maltese people will have the opportunity to turn a new page by opting for change. We hear this yearning for change wherever we go. There are of course some who are still hesitant, and that is why the Labour Party needs to continue explaining its polices before the election takes place.

There is no doubt that reviving our tourism industry will feature highly in the list of priorities of a new Labour administration. Our plans for tourism will concentrate on both the short term to stop the present rot and make some early gains, as well as the medium and long term to ensure that this industry continues to be an important motor of the local economy in the future.

A recent study by the Lisbon Council has identified tourism as one of the growth areas for job creation in the EU over the next few decades. But we have assumed for far too long that tourists visit our country irrespective of the obvious weaknesses in our product. How wrong we have been in adopting this arrogant attitude.

Therefore, a future Labour government will, within a few weeks of taking office, take action to clean up the island of the obvious obstacles

that are irritating our guests. We will consult with the stakeholders in this industry to make the north, central and south zones of our tourism centres more attractive and pleasing to those who visit us. We will ensure that standards are maintained and that everyone delivers what one promises. In other words, we will put the customer first.

But we have no illusions. It will take more than just a facelift to put our tourism industry back on track. We have to carry out a strategic review of our industry. We need to ask ourselves whether our present product is still saleable, or whether we need to rethink completely what we can offer the tourist of today who has different tastes, needs and aspirations from the tourist of even 10 years ago.

We expect operators to do their part too. The government will act as a facilitator to bring about the changes that are needed. But we cannot dictate future direction in isolation. We need to build a team made up of entrepreneurs, technocrats, as well as policy makers to ensure that whatever is decided is well planned, enjoys broad support from different stakeholders, and clearly defines responsibilities for results to be achieved.

Tourism should never be a partisan issue. But this does not mean that we do not criticise the failures this industry is constantly experiencing under the stewardship of the present government. We now need to move on because the interests of our families lie in the success of this important industry, which has the potential of creating thousands of jobs.

We would be mistaken if we were to assert that this industry is natural to Malta and that all we need do is a little patching here and a lick of paint there. Countries, like Switzerland, that have been successful for several years in maintaining a healthy tourism industry, have taken steps to ensure that the care of guests becomes a part of their culture imbued in everyone from the first years of schooling.

We too can bring about the necessary change after years of mediocre performance. That is why the operators in this industry need to build up courage and opt for change to ensure that the priorities

for reviving this industry

are well defined and even better executed. A Labour government is the best guarantee for the revival of this industry.

Dr Mangion is deputy leader of the Opposition.