So now it is official. Malta is in a recession. According to published figures, since we had a decrease in growth for two consecutive quarters, Malta has officially entered a recession

Of course this is no good news for us all. This should not be seen as a political thing, especially from the Opposition. In fact, in our comments, we did not see it as a plus for us to score political points. Behind these figures there are a number of other stories and problems that families and individuals are encountering. No one could and should be happy with negative issues. We, as the Labour Party, are not happy at all.

But the writing was on the wall from years ago. We kept telling the government of the day about a number of issues that could finally have a negative impact on the Maltese economy. Of course, not everything depends on local decisions. This is a fact and it is granted in the analyses of why we ended up in a recession. Around us there are counties which are going through very difficult times. But not all are experiencing this or of the same magnitude. That said, there should be no room for complacency since the world economy is very volatile and things might change haphazardly.

However, Maltese families have been trying to make ends meet for years now. Families are struggling to cope with everyday needs and pay bills and all sorts of tariffs introduced behind the scenes by GonziPN. Therefore, although the statistics in the not so distant past did not show that we were in a recession, experience and talking with people showed that things were not looking so good for us. Government continued to take the wrong decisions or else did not have its priorities right. Spending millions of Euro on unnecessary projects in the prevailing circumstances, and then not finding the money for more pressing issues was and still is a mistake which I believe is contributing to the recession.

As part of my everyday work as a politician, I meet people who are interested in growing their business and are keen to invest their money too. However, they are hindered by the excessive bureaucracy of a number of government authorities, departments and agencies. In Parliament and in other places, politicians from both sides have been uttering this state of affairs for many years. But the question is, what was done to curb this fact? Instead of giving a red carpet treatment to businessmen in order for them to invest, employ people and make the economy grow, the state is doing the opposite. GonziPN knows this, but does not know how to tackle the issue. Apart from the fact that by continuously increasing the water and electricity tariffs, which are not only a burden for families but also for the economy, the government is making these companies less competitive.

To add insult to injury, the government cannot intervene in the circumstances, since the national debt is on the rise and the budget for this year had to be lowered by €40 million as instructed by the EU Commission. This means that notwithstanding the cheap political talk by GonziPN about the sound state of Maltese finances, this is not the case for a number of reasons. Also, in the past the government was advised to have a contingency plan in place. But because of its hard headedness, the country does not have one. The time is just right for the government to forward some kind of measures by which it plans to counter this situation to prevent further deterioration.

In the current circumstances, both in Malta and in mainland Europe, the priority should be economic growth and not austerity measures. The European Socialists are promoting this very much and have increased their efforts after the election of Monsieur Hollande as the French President.

However, in Malta we have an additional problem and this is GonziPN and his clique. They are not recognising that we have a problem. And to begin solving an existent problem, one must first realize and accept the fact that that problem exists. Maybe they are saying this solely for campaigning and electioneering purposes, but people must not be deceived all the time. On a number of occasions in the recent past, both international and local institutions have voiced concerns over the state of Malta’s economy and finances. However, the government disregarded their advice and persisted with a business-as-usual attitude.

Finally, the government, especially the Prime Minister, needs to focus entirely on the issues which are affecting the country rather than those affecting his party. Of course, it is evident that party and state became the same thing, but by sticking to this attitude, the country is not only losing precious time but also dragging itself into further problems. The priority now should be getting out of the recession.

Carmelo Abela is a Labour MP and the Main Spokesperson for Social Policy Email: [email protected]