After the SmartCity Project was unanimously approved in parliament last night, Industry, Investment and Information Technology Minister Austin Gatt expressed his satisfaction at the outcome of the debate.

Dr Gatt said he was glad the government had managed to persuade the opposition of the benefits the project would bring to the country.

He said he was surprised that, after 14 hours of sittings in the National Audit Office Accounts Comittee and later in the Chamber, the government had managed to persuade the opposition to join its line of reasoning.

He said this was evidenced by the fact that the opposition had not asked for a division to vote on the motions it had proposed and therefore appeared to have abandoned the reservations and objections it had expressed over the past few months.

Dr Gatt said it was clear that the opposition had to line itself with the Maltese community’s perception that this project is very important to the country.

The opposition, he said, could not continue to be the only organisation opposing the project.