Members of Malta’s new Cabinet have started to give their first reactions to their Ministerial appointments, with many speaking to The Malta Independent in Valletta prior to their swearing in.
In his first comments, Byron Camilleri – who will have an extended Home Affairs portfolio which also includes reforms and equality – said that he was honoured to be entrusted with the increased responsibility.
He said that one of the main priorities immediately are the legal changes to Malta’s IVF laws which was promised in the run-up to the general election.
Asked how he intends to continue building public trust in the police force, Camilleri said that trust had already been on the increase in the past two years according to Eurobarometer surveys, but acknowledged that more needs to be done in this regard.
“Now we can work more serenely, because in the past two years we had to work in a bit of a rush to do a lot of changes. We have a strong foundation to work off of and to make the necessary changes and reforms to give people a better quality of life,” he said.
In a short comment as he entered the Presidential Palace, Social Accommodation Minister Roderick Galdes said that he will be continuing where he left off, and to start reaping the fruits from what has been sown in the past five years.
Culture Minister Owen Bonnici said that it is a pleasure for him to be responsible for culture, a sector he loves and which has already been within his portfolio in past legislature. “It is my passion,” he said.
He said that he was happy to be working with Alison Zerafa Civelli as a parliamentary secretary within his ministry.
We are passing through a delicate phase, as we emerge from the Covid-19 pandemic. Many people earn a living from culture, and they were deeply affected by the restrictions in place because of the spread of the virus.
“We have to be sensitive towards these cultural practitioners,” he said. “We have to be there for them.”
He said that his first commitment is to see that the sector gets back on its feet after the difficult period it has gone through.
Energy and Environment Minister Miriam Dalli said that she is determined to deliver as she has done in her first experience as minister in the last legislature. “We will start working straight away,” she said when it was pointed out that she has been given a super ministry.
Asked about the Labour Party’s commitment to invest €700 million in the sector, Dalli said that the government will immediately be embarking to work on projects that have already been identified and others that will come up in the future.
The goal is to give a facelift to this country, she said.
Stefan Zrinzo Azzopardi on his part thanked the Prime Minister for his confidence in appointing him in as Minister for Planning, and, when asked about what he will do combat the distrust which has developed in the Planning Authority, said “I will make sure that facts will speak louder than words.”
It is always an honour to serve the government, in whatever responsibility one is given, new Foreign Minister Ian Borg meanwhile said.
The foreign affairs ministry is a huge responsibility, one with many challenges, he said. This will fill me with fresh energy.
Are you going to miss your old job, he was asked. “Not at all, I look forward to the future,” he said.
Economy Minister Silvio Schembri thanked the Prime Minister for the confidence that he showed in him, saying that his portfolio now includes European funds.
He said that the Maltese economy faced a stiff test, that of the pandemic. We have passed that test, and now we look forward to generating the economy, both through traditional sectors as well as new ones.
Keith Azzopardi Tanti, who was elected for the first time this weekend and has been made Parliamentary Secretary for Youths and Research & Innovation, meanwhile thanked those in the first district for their faith in him and promised that he would translate it into a lot of work.
“I have to prove myself to show that I am up to the job,” Azzopardi Tanti said in reaction to his appointment to Cabinet.
On what his first point on the agenda will be, he said that he would start by meeting the public service and meet Education Minister Clifton Grima – under whose remit his parliamentary secretariat falls – and take things from there.
Justice Minister Jonathan Attard said that he looks forward to starting his job in “such an important role”.
He said he is committed to see that the proposals in the Labour Party’s electoral programme.
Video interviews: Kevin Schembri Orland
Top photo: Miguela Xuereb - Newsbook