Nationalist MP and former minister Ninu Zammit yesterday demonstrated the importance of using energy efficiently, saying that the energy wasted by stand-by buttons left switched on unnecessarily in the EU every year would serve Malta’s electricity needs for 25 whole years.
Mr Zammit was one of the numerous MPs who participated in yesterday’s second parliamentary session, which ran between 4pm and 10pm.
The House discussed the budget estimates for the portfolio that falls under the responsibility of the Office of the Prime Minister, which includes tourism, the environment, the Malta Environment and Planning Authority (MEPA) and local councils, among other things.
Nationalist MP Francis Zammit Dimech, also a former minister, said statistics show that the opposition, particularly former Labour leader Alfred Sant, was wrong in saying that opening up to low cost carriers would not be a good thing for Malta.
He said Air Malta has been doing well, despite the fact that low cost carriers now operate on the Malta route.
“Competitiveness often brings out the best in whoever is capable of strengthening its service. The accessibility factor is extremely important for our tourism industry,” he said.
Nationalist MP Robert Arrigo urged Air Malta to be more aggressive in increasing its occupancy rate, and spoke about the importance of having competitive rates and seat flexibility.
Mr Arrigo urged the government to intervene in the case of the Gzira United Football Club, saying the pitch is in a pitiful state.
Speaking about Balluta Square, Mr Arrigo said he is not in favour of development in the square, especially if it would consist of a car park below the square. He did say, however, that he is all for a circular electrical bus service for the whole St Julian’s area.
The case is still unclear, he said, and requested Parliamentary Secretary Chris Said’s intervention in this regard.
Mr Arrigo also referred to the government study regarding VAT on restaurants. It is only logical that VAT on restaurants should stay, he said. Rather than compiling such studies, money should go towards better causes, such as attracting more people to the country, said Mr Arrigo.
Nationalist MP Franco Debono, on his part, spoke about the importance of bringing parliament closer to the people. He proposed the idea of broadcasting parliamentary sessions on TV or streaming them live on the internet.
Going on to talk about energy, Dr Debono said the country should tap into alternative sources, especially hydrogen, which is very abundant, even if the technology used to generate energy from hydrogen is still expensive.
The next speaker after Dr Debono during yesterday evening’s parliamentary session was Nationalist MP and former Health Minister Louis Deguara, who spoke about a number of issues in the health sector.
“A few years back, a health fund was proposed, but we seem to have forgotten about it completely, though it has to be said that the budget for the health sector has increased significantly.”
On the sexual health policy, Dr Deguara said surely some funds could have been allocated to fund this much needed policy, which is yet to be published and has been in the pipeline for the last 10 years.
Nationalist MP Jesmond Mugliett, also a former minister, spoke about the need for the construction industry to be given a stimulus, while PN MP Joe Falzon spoke particularly about MEPA, criticising the opposition for ignoring the consultation process leading to the MEPA reform.
He said the reform would also have to involve a change in attitudes and the way policies are applied.
Earlier during yesterday’s session, Labour MP Karmenu Vella said the budget was meant to give stimulus and direction, but the truth was rather different.
The GDP had decreased by two per cent; national debt had gone up by some e163 million, which was an unsustainable percentage of the GDP (69 per cent) and inflation increased, yet the government insisted Malta was no worse off than other countries. Other countries had natural resources, he said, but what did Malta have?
It seemed the government could not decide whether the recession had hit Malta hard or not, as it presented different opinions, depending on the situation.
The recession was an undeniable factor, he admitted, but could one blame the recession for the millions lost in the Fairmount contract or the VAT scandal? Although some sectors had progressed in Malta, it wasn’t enough to make good for those which hadn’t.
Tourism was a crucial sector, as it rendered 25 per cent of Malta’s GDP, gave a 7 per cent boost to employment and a e650 million boost in income. This field hadn’t done too well, but not due to the crisis, he said, as it was never a sector in which the Nationalist government excelled.
There might have been other factors, he said, such as the fact that the sector merited a Minister, Air Malta being cut off from tourism, and government seemingly regarding it as a source of taxation.
He admitted that the product was being improved, but not as much as the competitors. Malta had to be competitive. The spending profile of tourists had revealed that spending per capita had gone up to e457, he said.
The core markets for Malta; England, France, Italy and Germany were not major spenders, but the top spenders, after Singapore and Hong Kong, were Norway and Austria. These had to be factored in when marketing Malta, he said.
When it comes to the environment, Labour Spokesperson for the Environment Leo Brincat said, the government could not use the recession as an excuse for the terrible year.
The environment was one of the main priorities in the PN electoral campaign, and a direct responsibility of the Prime Minister, he said, but as a prominent environmentalist put it “...on environmental matters the government cannot be trusted any longer...”
The terrible thing was that rather than an admission of failure for the sake of accountability, authorities and government entities would rather shirk the blame than take political responsibility.
Considering the environmental problems Malta was facing today, including a serious pollution problem, the general consensus is this should have been given far more importance in the budget.
Turning to sustainable development, Mr Brincat said it had been ignored for too long. A committee which was set up last met in 2006, according to Dr Gonzi, and he admitted that three persons were working on this important issue, part time.
Mr Brincat asked whether the strategy update had been concluded, and whether he would publish it and discuss it in parliament when it was. He also asked whether this had been factored in when the climate change mitigation strategy was being prepared, as the two were inseparable.
Considering that the EU had a e207 million fund dedicated to environmental projects, Mr Brincat wondered why Malta had not qualified for any projects with the Life+ programme last year, whereas Cyprus was allocated e6 million for five different projects.
While he understood that reforms took time, Mr Brincat said the problem was that until the MEPA reform was implemented, there seemed to be no commitment to ensuring that decisions taken truly favoured the environment and sustainable development.
It also seemed that the government wanted to bring only the aspects which needed legal amendment before parliament.
On a more positive note, Mr Brincat said the study on tourist perception of environmental issues in Malta, though basic, was interesting. Surprisingly, he said, even the Italians were sensitive to environmental awareness.
Now that MEPA had identified the company which was illegally dumping waste oil in Marsa, he said, why had action suddenly been brought to a halt? Mr Brincat also asked whether there had been any tampering with the data in air quality monitoring stations in Msida and Zejtun, and whether the records were always in real time.
Both parties had made mistakes, Mr Brincat concluded, but the fundamental difference was that the PL learnt from theirs, but the PN lacked the political will and commitment.
Other PL speakers in this debate included Helena Dalli, Roderick Galdes, Stefan Buontempo and Gino Cauchi.
