Though to an increasingly diminishing following, the Nationalist Party strives hard and succeeds every year in putting up a mass of activities in order to celebrate Independence Day. This year was no exception to this annual exercise of hype and spin. Modern tactics also entail the use of journalists from the left in their futile attempt to illustrate the openness, frankness and transparency of the way they do politics, but to no avail; because now all such gimmicks are well known, and no masquerade can really hide the real issues and results of this ailing administration.

As happens in all democratic societies, assessment of the performance of an economy is not left to the national institutions alone. We are now very familiar with the language and content of official government reports and data. The real issues, especially the heavier ones, are here very well iced-over with impressive technical jargon, which boggles us to understand what the data is really saying. Indeed, the language of other similar reports (both local and foreign) is easier to follow and delivers its message in a much more clear and transparent manner, than what is being done by the official government reports.

The World Economic Forum Global Competitiveness findings, illustrates the issue very well. Malta’s increase in its overall ranking from the 44th place to the 39th was in fact only due to the decline of other countries. Not only so, but the government’s poor performance when it comes to the budget deficit and the national debt, brought Malta down in its overall placing. Last week’s European Union statistics also sent a very worrying signal.

Competitiveness, or rather the lack of it, has in fact become the buzzword to indicate the main ills of our economy, making us unable to compete with similar economies in attracting investment and effecting sales. It has also further decreased our economy’s possibility of creating jobs and our industries’ profitability, thus further decreasing economic activity. This put very simply means lost jobs, difficulties in finding jobs and, for the self-employed and the small entrepreneur, the beginning of the road to bankruptcy.

What is eroding our competitiveness is clear. Most reports cite government bureaucracy and taxes. A report by the Malta Chamber of Commerce indicated that at the lowest end, an average SME, in order to comply with the current level of bureaucratic demand, has to spend between Lm1,500 to Lm2,000 annually; going up to hundreds of thousands in larger enterprises. On the other hand, taxes and administrative dues are the other millstone. We have heard time on end that certain ministries are working hard to eliminate excessive bureaucracy. Results please, however.

Inflation is the other culprit, snaking up to what remains standing on our apple tree, in order to swallow that up as well. To the wage earners it’s catastrophic. Our wage packets, especially for those working for the government and its agencies, had insignificant increases but when one accounts for inflation, one finds that one ends up as a net loser. (Not so for the few who managed to enrol in the so-called new government agencies. They seem to be getting inflation-adjusted salaries).

Present rates of inflation are also proving to be reducing the possibility of Malta joining the euro, possibly depriving business from what has been propagated as a plus to competitiveness. Who knows?

Both lack of competitiveness and inflation are results of bad government. No thickness of icing, or obsession with pouring concrete over problems, can hide such abhorrent scares.

This government has not only failed the lower income groups, but also business itself. Our economy needs solid policies and an even more solid administration. No more patchwork. For Labour it’s essential that we radically transform this nation’s system and character.

That is what we are promising and that is what we will do. What we promise we will deliver. Our Labour plan will mean a new beginning for this country and its people.

A much better future indeed, for all and sundry.

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Dr Michael Falzon is the MLP Deputy Leader for Party Affairs