Figures published by the National Statistics Office show that the government does not have any strategy for the tourism industry, Labour MP Marie Louise Coleiro Preca, party spokesperson for the industry, said.

The figures show that the number of cruise liner visitors in January has gone down by 28 per cent when compared to January last year, a period when the world was in recession.

On the other hand there was an improvement last January at the Malta International Airport, which showed the lack of strategy by the government, confirmed in an article by the new chairman of the Malta Tourism Association who stressed the need for a strategy.

It is unfortunate that the government is using the recession as a pretext for the enormous drop in cruise liner passengers. Tourism contributed 25 per cent of the gross domestic product and employs some 14,000 persons full time, and about 10,000 persons part time, Ms Coleiro Preca said.

The government should formulate a national strategy and withdraw the fiscal measures which are burdening the sector and making it uncompetitive.