There are just three men in Malta who believe the economy is picking up. They are Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi and the heads of the two major banks, HSBC and Bank of Valletta, Shaun Wallis and Roderick Chalmers respectively.

Speaking at a business seminar recently, Mr Wallis was very bullish about Malta’s economy. In marked contrast to many pundits, experts and ‘economists’ of all hues, he said that his bank has seen a continuous growth in wealth creation as opportunities open up.

Speaking at a Euro-Med conference, the BOV chairman was equally bullish.

Mr Wallis and Mr Chalmers must also be seeing something the general public never gets a glimpse of – the internal restructuring going on in many Maltese companies as they put their houses in order and plan to fight a more competitive world.

Mr Wallis also referred to a recent opinion poll carried out by his bank of 867 senior executives; 39 per cent said they think the economy is doing reasonably well against 45 per cent who claimed the economy was ‘flat’ and only 16 per cent who claimed the economy was doing poorly. Sixty-five per cent also said they did better in 2005 than they did in 2004.

This ‘reasonably optimistic’ outlook seems to be reflected also in the FOI Industry Survey published last week, which said the outlook of local manufacturing operators has improved over the past months as stronger order books came together with increased production.

So far so good. But it is still a far cry from here to persuade the country that it is doing OK. Let’s state the facts. The country has passed through a series of bad years with no growth at all, despite this and the previous government’s insistence on the ‘new spring’, ‘recovery round the corner’ etc. The country has come to believe more in the Cassandras who foretell bad times ahead than the Incurable Optimists who declaim dawn in the middle of the night. And the prime Cassandra, the Leader of the Opposition, gets more coverage in his Bad Omen on Prime Time than almost anybody else.

Secondly, the Prime Minister is equally perceived to be in election mode as he sees reasons for optimism everywhere, so he is equally and perhaps more, not believed. He is more widely perceived to be trying to talk up the economy as his predecessor tried to do in 1996, and with no success except to have to use huge resources to do what the economy refused to do.

Thirdly, the country is still reeling from the shock of the electricity and water rate increases. Even though most admit this was due to the oil price increase, and even if it seems the higher rates have not stopped people from using their cars or heating their homes, as people did in the bad old 1970s with that oil price spike, the increased energy bill is horrific for most families, especially those at the lower end of the social scale.

Then there are the many added constraints and obstacles that impede most of us from seeing our quality of life take a leap forward.

Take, for instance, one revelation this past week when with just the stroke of a pen the government cruelly impeded no less than 15,000 Maltese from enjoying a holiday abroad by doubling the airport tax to Lm20 per ticket. If government thought it would boost its revenue by such a tax, it miscalculated badly, and bully for it too! For while in 2004 the government made Lm370,000 from the departure tax, it only made Lm160,000 last year when it doubled the tax. Serves it right!

One must also mention how almost impossible it has become to go anywhere because of the sheer number of cars on the roads, all the parking places taken and the wardens ever on the prowl. Sometimes there is sheer vindictiveness abroad in the way ordinary people are treated by wardens, green wardens, police and the rest of officialdom, not forgetting the VAT people. Given that the government must try and rake in all the revenue it can get, why must its long fingers be so grasping, so uncaring, so unbending in its application of the law?

On the other hand, it is true the economy is resilient and the Maltese ever-resourceful, and that as many as half the people who lost their jobs at Denim Services have since found another job (something which is simply impossible in countries like France or Germany), but it is also true that the government seems to think that the only way to attract investment and industry is through a change in the law. Wrong! The pharmaceutical industries claim they cannot find enough skilled staff. And if IT industries come, will they find the required critical mass of IT-literate middle skills they need or will this lack contribute to pushing them away. A government with more substance than spin would take over MCAST and immediately double the intake of the courses that relate to these industries so all those who want to enter can do so and the industries, when they come, will find a ready pool of skilled workers.

You do not talk up the economy, Mr Prime Minister, with just talk. You are in a position to take action. Remove the blocks, encourage the goers, and smooth away any obstacles in their path and the economy will recover.