The biggest issue which will dominate Malta in this coming year will be the restructuring of our national carrier Air Malta.

It hit the headlines just after the budget last year and what emerged was that the airline is ridiculously overstaffed and that much of the management was incompetent at best, ludicrously out of their depth at worst.

In the event, experts have been brought in and the Easyjet king is now on board to try and help sort out Air Malta’s woes. The government and opposition are committed to retaining it as a strategic asset. But we must be under no delusions. Workers’ jobs will be shed and just like the corporate private world, employees will be asked to do more to increase productivity. We hope that as few jobs as possible are lost and that Air Malta can continue to do us proud. It is our flag on the planes and we, the people, want it to survive and prosper with as little fallout as possible.

Divorce is another one which will capture our attention. It was finally put solidly on the agenda, when PN and PL MPs Jeffrey Pullicino Orlando and Evarist Bartolo presented a joint private members Bill. We appeal to the politicians. It is not your call to decide whether it should come in or not. That is a civil right. What you need to decide is how to legislate and how to make it relevant to our society. People who want divorce do not want everyone to get divorced. They only want it for their own particular circumstances. The abused, the cheated on, the miserable, the raped, the beaten; and above all else the children, deserve another chance at happiness.

This year will also see the implementation of the new public transport system to accompany the City Gate project. We have always maintained that with three projects, someone is bound not to like one of them. This seems to be the case in the open air theatre and we hope more discussion ensues. But all in all, it is heartening to see Valletta get some much needed attention. As for the transport system; on paper it looks fantastic. But in reality we know that for the first few months, at least, it is going to be chaotic. We urge patience, no one can fix 50 years of well below sub-standard service and mentalities in a day.

We also hope that the authorities will fix more roads. There are many projects scheduled in this respect and we hope that deadlines and projected costs are adhered to. The government should continue with its strategy to maintain our good fiscal record and improve it by chopping down the deficit. Let us tighten the belt in that respect now, but be honest, don’t try to do it through the utility bills – no one believes you anymore on that front anyway.

We also hope that the Labour Party can up its game somewhat. While the party says it has opened its doors to all, it is very clear that it only means lock stock and barrel. It is still too hard to interact with the Ivory Tower in Hamrun, the party must engage in dialogue with those that are not on board but merely want to hear and understand the party message. That means the media, the undecided voter, the informed voter and the political analyst.

2011 can hardly be as bad as the torrid and ever dragging 2010. But we look ahead with optimism and we hope that Malta will continue to strive to compete in Europe and indeed the world. Bring it on.