Cospicua local council, according to the IT ministry, is carrying on the Malta Labour Party policy of taking a partisan stance during the consultation stage of the Grand Harbour project.

The ministry said in a statement such a stance was not in the best interest of residents. It said Cospicua council called the government’s programme an “insult to the people of Cospicua”, because according to the council, the government does not want to develop Dock 1 before 2015.

However, said the ministry, the programme said that the government considered the dock to be in the implementation phase, thus it was not part of any long term plan.

The ministry explained that the Romegas Consortium has submitted the Dock 1 Outline Development Permit and the Malta Environment and Planning Authority was studying it to determine how the development should be carried out. The result, said the ministry, would influence the negotiations between the government and the consortium.

Cospicua council, said the ministry, was aware of the situation and has attended consultation meetings as other councils in the area have done.

It invited the Labour-led councils to show some goodwill and cooperate for the good of their communities.