The Water Services Corporation estimates for the year ending September 2007 were approved by Parliament on Tuesday.
Continuing the debate, which had started on Monday, Labour MP Marie Louise Coleiro Preca made particular reference to the social aspect of the cost of this service. She said that the surcharge on water and electricity was causing hardship to many Maltese families.
Nobody was contesting the fact that the international price of oil had increased, but the government also had a duty towards people in difficulty.
Dr Coleiro Preca said that in 2006, 13,000 families which were in financial difficulties were exempted from paying the surcharge on utility bills. However, she added that not all families are aware that this exemption exists and many do not have appropriate information necessary to apply for such a benefit.
Thus, she stated that the state has a responsibility towards all and should be aware of those people who should be benefiting from this exemption. She added that the government together with the Water Services Corporation should remove the surcharge for these families without them having the need to apply for the exemption.
Dr Coleiro Preca said that it is unjust that even families who have young children and survive on a single minimum wage, still need to pay surcharge. She said that it is also unfair for the surcharge to depend solely on consumption, because the number of people living in the household affects the amount of water and electricity consumed.
Dr Coleiro Preca then asked for the criteria within which the humanitarian committee selects eligible surcharge-exemption cases, because according to her, there are many other people who are in dire need of being exempt and are still required to pay the surcharge on the water and electricity bills.
Labour MP Evarist Bartolo also put emphasis on the pressure which has been placed on families with the introduction of the surcharge, adding that the tourism industry was also suffering the consequences. He said that many hotels have had to close down, and it is also estimated that other large hotels will be closing down in the near future. He also said that he considers it unfair that restaurants do not benefit from any form of capping.
The surcharge had also affected the competitiveness of local hotels, with five-star hotels experiencing an 11 per cent increase in costs per room.
Mr Bartolo also mentioned that many people complain about the quality of the water. He stated that although some work has been done to improve its quality, the water is still not pure enough.
He also spoke about the problem with the water distribution system in areas where houses are being demolished and replaced by new blocks of apartments. He asked whether the water service and drainage system is efficient enough to sustain such developments.
Nationalist MP Robert Arrigo praised the Water Services Corporation for the efficient service which they offer the general public. He stated that when people phone in with complaints with regard to water and electricity, such people are offered an effective service. With regards to drainage overflows he stated that new equipment is being sought in order to improve the drainage system.
He compared the situation today with what used to happen under a Labour administration, when people used to spend days without water supply in their homes.
Labour MP Silvio Parnis said the surcharge issue would be a determining factor in the coming elections. He mentioned the difficulties elderly people were facing because of the bills they are receiving. Mr Parnis said a Labour government would make sure that the situation of this sector of society is improved.
Nationalist MP Michael Asciak said the government was absorbing a substantial part of the cost of oil purchases to reduce the burden on the people, and low income families were being exempted from having to pay the surcharge. The Malta Labour Party was saying that it would reduce the surcharge by half, but Dr Asciak asked how this was going to be done.
Labour MP Roderick Galdes also commented about the quality of water. He stated that from studies carried out there is a high level of nitrates in the water. He argued that the general public should be aware of the quality of the water they are consuming.
Concluding the debate, Investment, Industry and IT Minister Austin Gatt said that Labour’s claims that oil prices had fallen to the levels when the surcharge was 17 per cent was not true. At that time, the cost of oil was $203 per tonne, and now it is $267 per tonne.
Nor was it true that the surcharge should be halved because oil prices had dropped by 50 per cent. When the surcharge was at its peak, the oil price was $369 per tonne. The current price – at $267 – was nowhere near half, the minister said.
Dr Gatt said that some 17,000 households were currently exempt from paying the surcharge, and a Humanitarian Committee had been set up to consider further applications, especially of those people who might exceed an established income threshold but who might still need to be assisted.
Repeating an appeal he made last year, Dr Gatt called upon the Malta Resources Authority to clamp down on unauthorised groundwater extraction as much as possible.
He emphasised the government’s intention not to privatise the WSC or dismiss any workers. The corporation was working hard to improve standards and great steps forward had been made in this regard. It managed to do so while at the same time reducing costs, and in just three years it has saved the country Lm4.3 million.
The estimates were later approved with the opposition voting against.