Over the past weeks I have been encouraging readers to send in questions or comments so that I may be able to deal with them through this column. I am encouraged by the response and I have been regularly responding to various queries that I receive in one form or other, as well as dealing with other subjects which in my opinion require more explanation, even if I do not receive any formal question.
Only two days ago, The Times chose to deal editorially with low-cost carriers and raised various questions. I think it is appropriate that I deal with those queries immediately.
Will those tour operators who seem reluctant to include Malta in their brochure next year be demanding equal incentives (to those offered to low-cost carriers)?
The truth is that for many years tour operators have been offered incentives that are largely not only equal to those offered to low-cost carriers, but often enough more generous. Tour operators will carry on being offered the same incentives they have been offered over the past years, and the door is wide open where there is room for further genuine discussion.
Moreover, market support schemes for tour operators have never been route-specific as is now the case with low-cost carriers, and we have never factored in sufficiently amount of support given as against actual number of visitors generated - again, unlike what is happening with low-cost carriers.
Tour operators remain a crucial component of the mix of sources that Malta needs to tap for its tourists and I shall more than welcome strengthening the collaboration that already exists with all tour operators within the context of a professional and business like approach wherein we establish together how to grow further the number of tourists that can be encouraged to come to Malta through their packages.
Positive news from operators like Thomas Cook, who will be holding its annual conference in Malta in December, bringing over 2,000 senior management and customer facing staff from all across their agencies, and like My Travel, which will be ensuring that it brings over more tourists to Malta next year after reaching an agreement with Air Malta to have more capacity for this purpose, certainly make the point that I am making even more eloquently.
It is not within the ministry's remit or competence to conduct such discussions and I am confident that the Malta Tourism Authority has highly capable people who will pursue this line of action to the best of their ability.
And won't Easyjet now come knocking at the door demanding the same conditions?
They really don't have to do anything of the sort! Over the past months we have been knocking at their door ourselves. When an agreement was about to be reached with Ryanair, we informed Easyjet that an identical agreement was being offered to them - on the same conditions and in respect of the routes for which they submitted an offer following an open call.
Discussions with Easyjet are still ongoing, and I cannot emphasise enough that Easyjet will be more than welcome to operate to and from Malta on routes that are agreed upon with Government.
What if a year or two down the line, the Maltese market ends up relying more heavily on Ryanair? What if they want more money then - or else?
The reason why Government has, over the past year, been more than cautious as to how to introduce low-cost carriers as part of our tourism equation was precisely not to create over-dependence on any one source. Dare I remind one and all that Government's cautious approach was not exactly encouraged or endorsed, at least publicly, by any body or institution I can think of.
The foolproof method against creating over-reliance on Ryanair or any other single source for tourists is to consolidate more than ever before our own national airline's operations. At the end of this month, Ryanair will introduce regular flights from Luton and Pisa and as of next year, the same airline will have a service from Dublin.
This development should be seen as an opportunity rather than as a threat by Air Malta. I welcomed comments made by Air Malta's chairman on Friday morning to this effect. We were cautious not to overdo it and even as I write there are strong lobbies making the case to dramatically increase the number of routes that can be offered to low-cost carriers through market support mechanisms.
On our part we chose to offer only unserved or under-served routes in order to have growth in tourism without prejudicing the present operators.
Moreover, when last April, Government issued a four-pillar strategy to make up for the declines we are facing in tourism and move back to growth, market support for specific routes in favour of low-cost carriers was only one of the four pillars. Another pillar provided for working more closely with the legacy carriers, such as Air Malta, Lufthansa, Emirates, Alitalia and GB Airways, to ensure that even these carriers can strengthen their own operation in Malta.
Government has not only reached agreement with Ryanair. Over the past year agreements with low-fare operators such as Meridiana in Italy resulting in a growth of over 12,000 Italian tourists when most other markets have been experiencing difficulties, and with GermanWings to have low-fare flights from Stuttgart and Cologne as of next year again prove that Government is not putting all eggs in one basket.
Ryanair has done its homework before it came here. Can the same be said of the government?
Ironically, Ryanair will be coming to Malta precisely on the basis of a call issued by Government and not because of other proposals that were made to us by other sources. If the market support that will be required will be more than what we initially projected, that will be the price of success of Government's scheme. It is the sort of problem that we are more than happy to look forward to.
Are low-cost carriers enough?
No. Product Malta with all that represents remains crucial. Ultimately we have to attract tourists to choose Malta as opposed to choosing any of the unlimited number of destinations that are now on offer to people deciding to travel out of their country. Once they come here, we must offer them sufficient reasons to come back.
Competition is fiercer than ever before. Government has done its utmost to improve our country's infrastructure and amenities. Equally we know very well that there is scope to do much more. Without minimising that reality and commitment in any way, Product Malta depends on how each and every one of us deals with tourists when we meet them in our work or even casually.
Do we overcharge them? Do we ask them to pay a different price than we would charge a Maltese person? Do we make them feel welcome at least through a genuine smile? Is the service we offer them always up to scratch? Nobody owes us a living and flying to Malta is not compulsory! That is why it depends on all of us.
Do you notice any change of attitude from any relevant quarters now that a major low-cost carrier begins operating to Malta at the end of this month?
When some people might have thought that Government was trying to block low-cost carriers (which was never the case) no one spoke up to urge caution. Now that Government's plans are yielding results, including seeing low-cost carriers as part of our mix, I notice that some dissenting voices begin to surface, not least from Opposition circles that always enjoy being against anything Government does!
One feature in the Labour Party's electronic newspaper says it all. After it was announced that Ryanair will be flying to Malta, a feature in that paper compared low-cost carriers to a seductive blonde sitting next to you on a plane.
According to the storyline, this blonde (why not brunette?) makes you mad about her until you realise a couple of years later that she had AIDS, and you are sorry (but then it's too late) that you were foolish enough to go for her while betraying your faithful wife who has been there alongside you for so many years. The wife stands for Air Malta.
This is not the first time that the Labour Party tried to scare people from a major decision being taken by Government by bringing up the subject of AIDS...
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