The state of carelessness which has culminated into the disgraceful environment we are living in, is needless to emphasise, or comment upon. It is a reflection of how this administration does; or rather, fails to do; things. Malta is literally leaderless. The Nationalist administration has indeed lost its contact with the Maltese people in general and prefers to maintain its workings with the few.

Nowhere is this policy more evident than in Gozo.

This administration has ruined all the prospects for the progress of this island and its people. Economic activity on the island is in a steep decline. The main source of its income, tourism, is continuously being eroded and most establishments are depending on internal tourism from the Maltese; which are themselves dwindling in numbers. The little manufacturing industry there was, and which knows its foundation to the efforts of the Labour administrations in the 70s and 80s, has been dwindling since the early 90s and today is pittance.

It is in this context, that Labour has laboured intensively to produce A Development Plan for Gozo as a Region (http://www.mlp.org.

mt/rizorsi/dokumenti/downloads/GHAWDEXFORPRINT.pdf). This document, if not the best of all the documents yet presented; carries the hallmark of the commitment that Labour is investing in its future administrative capacities. The skills so clearly evident in the preparation of this document indicate clearly, that Labour has both its feet on the ground, and that it can and will listen to and communicate with all Gozitans in all spheres of life. Its promoters clearly had the skills to articulate positive ideas and present them as a workable plan. The Nationalist administration, on the other hand, with all its state-paid professionals; does indeed produce a lot of reports, but these are devoid of ideas that are coming from the real grassroots. They are continuously failing to connect with the ordinary citizens.

The Labour plan for Gozo centres strongly on the basic consideration that Gozo is a region. An economic and political unit, with its own particularities and problems. The island can indeed offer opportunities, but only if one understands the dynamics that drive its potential forces and the initial investments necessary. Not only we in Malta, but also the EU, has indicated that Gozo requires a special regime of support, it being an island depending on Malta for most of its needs. From this fact, for example, there stems the idea of the need for a structure of specific assistance, particularly in potentially subsidising transport between the islands. Labour has, in this document, among others, set out a number of initiatives that beef up the region concept and sets out the way forward for Gozo to move ahead in all spheres of everyday life.

Equally so, Labour is committed to the well-being of industry, especially the manufacturing industry. The manufacturing industry, together with tourism, were once the economic foundations that delivered years of stable growth. To out-rightly disregard the manufacturing sector as passé was a big mistake that this administration has made. Surely enough, the manufacturing industry is not the easiest area to operate in, but this administration did not take up the challenges that arose. Labour, on the other hand, will here provide the aid so direly needed in order to help realise the expectations of our industrialists, in helping them to move on and to find the relevant niche activities that will render the viability of their industries. One cannot but here ask what good or encouragement was delivered, from the bet that a minister has made lately, that all the manufacturing industry will be dead in ten years time.

In its Plan for the Renewal of Industry (http://www.mlp.org.

mt/rizorsi/dokumenti/downloads/INDUSTRIJADOCforprint.pdf), Labour is setting out a course of initiatives, aimed to set this sector back on its feet.

These initiatives are both short and long term. In the short term, help will be needed to re-launch the notion of support, that is so much in absence today. This, together with the offering of practical help, will encourage more entrepreneurs to gear up to the present admittedly difficult scenario. The basis of this initiative would be to consolidate what already exists, build on it and expand it, where possible. It is here useless to embark on such plans, without considering the important issues around competitiveness. What is sure is, that this administration has loaded our industry with an ever-increasing burden of locally-induced costs; something which requires immediate attention and action, if we are to reverse the present negative trends.

Such problems are not tackled by reducing the paid holidays of the workers.

On the bigger sphere, Labour is rightly so pointing out that it is useless to plan for the long term, without going into the notions of education, training and innovation. The dismantling of trade schools has here affected the supply of vocationally trained personnel and Labour is binding itself to find a solution for this problem. Similarly, our university also plays a major role in training our future engineers and thinkers. Innovation is itself a complex notion, susceptible to a number of interpretations, but it is definitely a necessary attitude that has to be instilled into our thinking. How can an institution, or a country, that is devoid in itself of innovation produce innovative graduates, that will in turn reverse the present decline? Not easy. More than resources alone, we also require vision and determination, qualities which have disappeared from this administration’s sight.

It is these; among many other things; which we, as a BETTER future Labour government promise the Maltese people, that is, the vision and determination our beloved country so badly needs!!!

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Dr Michael Falzon is the MLP Deputy Leader for Party Affairs