Nationalist Party leader Bernard Grech has called for the Covid-19 wage supplement to be extended to March, rather than January.

In a statement on social media, Grech said that “it’s positive that the Prime Minister heard our pleas to help businesses who are once again facing uncertainty and loss of business due to Covid-19.”

“But extending the wage supplement by just one month does not give them much breathing space. As a bare minimum, this should be extended until the end of March and should be tailored to businesses that are suffering the most, such as hospitality and catering establishments,”Grech said.

The statement follows a government announcement on Wednesday night that the wage supplement would be extended by a month from its scheduled end at the end of the year, to the end of January.

Grech said that the government also needs to “thread carefully with Covid-19 restrictions. All decisions taken should be backed by transparent science.”

“The public has been extremely cooperative so far and we cannot afford to erode that trust,” he said, perhaps in a reference to a recently renewed mandate forcing people to wear face-masks at all times outside even if they are fully vaccinated.

“Yes, we must be vigilant and we must take the vaccine and booster shots as soon as possible. But let us keep fighting for reasonable normality,” he said.