The Association of Marsascala Shop Owners has said that power cuts in the town had become a regular occurrence, with the supply failing several times a day, such as on Tuesday, causing substantial losses in business.

It was shameful, it said, that this sort of thing was happening in the season when business was expected to pick up to some degree.

In Marsascala, the association said, they were happening more than in other places, which was proof that the authorities and state enterprises were helping to kill business in the southeast of the country. It was obvious, it said, that some localities were more equal than others.

The association called on Enemalta to take action immediately and expressed its displeasure that Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi was ignoring the calls for help being made by the Marsascala area.