The water and electricity surcharge has been increased from 50 per cent to 95 per cent, and this will cripple many families unless they start consuming less energy.

To practically pay double the bill that we used to pay three years ago, and this when the wages have increased miserly over the same period, is tantamount to telling the people switch of the air-conditioning units and bear the heat.

The increase in the surcharge came at the time when the Maltese summer kicked in, with temperatures going above the 30 degrees Celsius mark. It could not have happened at a worse moment.

Many families will be tempted to lower their standard of living because of the surcharge, unless they want to end up bankrupt. It is not easy to find an extra e95 for each and every e100 that was normally spent on electricity and water.

It is said that the government had no other alternative, and in a way it is true. But at the end of the day it is the consumers who will be paying up for this. And paying more too – as there is no doubt that the price of services and products will also go up as businessmen try to make up for their own increase in costs by passing it on to the consumer.

The consumer is always the hardest hit in such circumstances.

Paul Caruana

Naxxar