Those who have nothing positive to offer the country and no vision for where they want to take the country are naturally inclined to indulge in populism, sensationalism, and attacks, Prime Minister Robert Abela said during an interview on ONE Radio on Sunday.

This has been “another week of sensationalism from the Opposition,” he remarked, referring to situations involving Health Minister Jo Etienne Abela and Home Affairs Minister Byron Camilleri. Speaking on the PN’s array of statements towards the two Ministers, Abela said that Camilleri is renowned for his integrity, and added that he has faith in Jo-Etienne Abela.

He remarked that “this week’s episode” goes further from sensationalism, and added that the Courts are trying to protect the judiciary process from “direct attacks on the integrity of process”. Abela said that the responsibility on the Labour Party to be the voice in favour of good grows, and that the General Conference with the upcoming party elections is part of a renewal process for the PL.

The Prime Minister spoke about a number of reforms which the government has enacted related to the construction sector. He said that several months ago, the government had issued a clear vision of what would be done in the sector in order to sustain it while strengthening peoples’ rights.

“The people want higher standards in this sector,” Abela commented. He said that the level of regulation within the construction sector was low, and so an analysis was completed to determine what should be done and give indications of what should be addressed. He continued that with the publishing of the Sofia inquiry, a process of reforms had begun.

Following the Sofia report being published, the Prime Minister said that the government had announced a number of initiatives to be implemented. He remarked that the government had made it clear that the aim was to finalise certain laws before parliament was to be suspended for summer recess. He was referring to the Health and Safety at Work Bill, which he said regulates health and safety through OHSA on the workplace, including in construction. “This law offers a revolutionary set of regulations which significantly strengthened workers.”

Abela said that an analysis on construction was conducted, and that certain anomalies were found. One such anomaly, he said, was that buildings which are designated as ‘standalone buildings’ had an ambiguity where a number of laws which applied to other constructions did not apply to such buildings. He said that this was unacceptable, and so the anomaly was eliminated.

He commented that this was “another strong reform”, and that another complete reform has also been enacted in relation to masons’ licences. Referring to this, he remarked that “we reformed it strongly” and that such licences now entail a “rigorous process.”

The Prime Minister said that the government has given stronger voices to citizens so that they do not feel helpless in the face of construction. He continued that those who have ongoing work in their residence and may be concerned can now reach out to the 138 helpline to voice their concerns and receive assistance. He said that the helpline was established with the aim of allowing people who feel affected by certain development to have an accessible 24/7 helpline which they could contact and immediately be assisted.

Expanding on this, Abela said that a new reform was enacted recently which initiated a new BCA-operated service which allows people who feel impacted by certain development to receive professional help from lawyers and architects for free. He referred to this measure as “one of the most important” because the reality is that citizens often felt helpless when faced with certain situations related to construction, and so the government wanted to address the situation.

Regarding this new service, the Prime Minister said that it has already received twenty requests since being established.

“This is the result when you have a government which is sensitive to the peoples’ issues,’ he commented, as he continued that the government “always keeps pushing the standards upward”. He added that there is still more to do and more reforms to be done.

Abela also spoke about new renting reforms and laws coming into place from Sunday. He said that this is another substantial and crucial reform, and that it has come about as a result of an analysis on the renting sector.

He said that the renting sector has grown, and that many people have invested in property so that they would be able to rent it, but that there has also been a situation leading to certain abuses.

“It is unacceptable to have situations where a two-bedroom apartment is rented out to twelve people,” the Prime Minister said. “We want to respect the dignity of all people… We will not tolerate abuses, both out of respect for the dignity of those who reside in the rented residence and also out of respect for neighbours,” he continued, as he commented that the government will strongly combat such abuses.

Detailing the reform, he said that the number of inhabitants of a residence will be tied directly to the number of bedrooms in the residence, meaning that a one-bedroom residence could have to tenants, and a two-bedroom residence could have four tenants, etc. He added that there are other requisites to ensure that there are no abuses, and that certain restrictions will not apply to families.

He said that the process of enacting this reform included weeks of deliberation, and that “there was anarchy” in this sector, with renting contracts sometimes not being registered. He continued that if someone is now caught registering a deceitful contract with the Housing Authority which lies about the number of residents in a dwelling, then criminal action and significant fines may be taken against them.