To try to justify the European Parliament election defeat, Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi accused the Labour Party of adding salt to the wound by proposing nothing, but after a few days he contradicted himself.

One of the Labour Party’s main issues during the last European election campaign was the cost of living. In our manifesto we proposed to apply pressure so that a price watch agency is set up to ensure fair competition and adequately well-prices services and products for consumers. During the run-up to the 6 June election, Lawrence Gonzi dismissed the Labour’s position claiming that setting up price watching agencies and controlling prices was not “a serious way” to slow the rising cost of living.

Less than a month later, when speaking during the opening of the Malta Trade Fair in Ta’ Qali, Minister Tonio Fenech announced a U-turn in the government’s stand on the need for a price watching agency in Malta. According to Tonio Fenech the government is updating local consumer and competition law while also working on the creation of an agency which would ensure fair competition and safeguard against abuse in prices.

Undoubtedly we welcome Tonio Fenech’s statement, which did not only confirm that the Labour Party is leading the way in consumer affairs, but also contradicted Lawrence Gonzi’s attitude to reject whatever the Labour Party proposes just for the sake of not agreeing and then after a few months or even weeks he makes a U-Turn.

The latest published statistics on the cost of living re-confirmed that Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi has lost all sense of control on the cost of living in our country. Inflation in Malta is three times higher than the average in the eurozone. The Eurostat statistics shows that inflation was higher in essential items and services such as food, energy, health and education. NSO statistics shows that on a year-on-year-basis, the cost of housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels had risen by 10.8 per cent, while prices for food and non-alcoholic beverages had shot up by 9.8 per cent.

The government can’t keep on ignoring this reality or blaming the tourist sector for such a price hike in the most essential items and services. This situation is creating social and economic problems. We must bring the cost of living under control, we must be sure that there is no abuse in prices, and no rise in the cost of living which is unjustified.

Now that the government is agreeing with us on the setting up of a price watch agency we must make sure that he keeps his promise and not throw it in the trash like he did when he promised to transform the NECC into an agency that protects the interests of consumers, a few days before the last general election.



Silvio Parnis is Labour spokesman for consumer affairs