PN MP Adrian Delia has said that there is “abuse across the board” at Transport Malta, as “thousands” of chauffeur-driven licence plates, commonly known as Y-plates, are being issued.

Delia was speaking during a discussion about changes to the Traffic Regulation Act which will result in harsher penalties for traffic violations, having already spoken about the matter in Parliament earlier this month.

He had said that there were abuses “across the board” that even Transport Malta themselves know about as they had issued formal documents in regards to this issue. 

There are complaints from Maltese drivers who apply to work with various chauffeuring companies that their Y-plates take around 2 to 3 months to arrive, while foreigners are able to start working within 3 to 4 days.

These companies end up employing foreigners because of the comparatively shorter time it takes for them to get Y-plates, on top of the fact that foreigners are being paid on a commission basis, rather than with a fixed salary.

The government was supposed to legislate on this matter and ensure gig-economy workers get paid a fixed wage even though, over half a year later, there were reports that workers were still not receiving their dues.

“How many Y-plates have Transport Malta issued in the past 3 or 4 years? We are not talking about a mere 50 or 100, but thousands of new Y-plates,” Delia said.

“The laws stipulate that for every Y-plate, there needs to be a garage to store the cars after working hours. So how is it possible for people to have tens, if not hundreds, of cars registered under their names? And how can it be that anyone, without possessing a single garage, is able obtain a Y-plate?” Delia questioned.

“This is all related to the increase in accidents that we’re seeing on our roads,” he continued.

“If you have someone who comes to Malta, and after a week of being here obtains an international driving licence enabling him to drive a Y-plate, without a garage, putting in multiple shifts, without proper knowledge of Malta’s roads and safety procedures, then you’re bound to see an increase in accidents,” he added.