Gozo chamber's concern at latest NSO figures

The Gozo Business Chamber is worried about the new statistics issued by the National Office of Statistics last Tuesday on the number of vehicles and passengers which used the Gozo Channel ferries from January to March, compared to those which crossed during the same period last year.

The figures show a decline of 7.8 per cent in vehicles and a decline of 4.6 per cent in the number of passengers. The Gozo Business Chamber said that this decline continued during April and May of this year. The statistics show that over the first five months of 2005 there had been a decrease of 27,193 vehicles and 64,463 passengers compared to the same period of 2004.

These alarming figures confirm the decline in the economic performance of the island region of Gozo, which the members of the chamber have been reporting in these last months.

It also said that this situation was regrettably envisaged in the report which the chamber together with the Gozo Tourism Association commissioned prior to the increase in the fares of Gozo Channel in June last year.

Last month, in its appeal to the Minister for Investment, Industry and Information Technology not to increase additionally the Gozo Channel fares in June 2005, the chamber was met with derision by the same Ministry who accused it of "lobbying its interests, even when these fly in the face of basic business and social tenets".

The ministry, like the chamber, is now confronted by irrefutable figures, which show an unprecedented decline in the number of passengers and vehicles. The blow to the Gozo economy through the increase in the Gozo Channel fares has now been confirmed.

The chamber appealed to the ministry to revoke with immediate effect all increases implemented in the past year so that the Gozo economy would be given the boost it direly needs.

In the end, the decline in the number of vehicles and passengers is dealing the death-blow to Gozo Channel Co. Ltd itself.