PM favours pay rise for ministers, MPs

Ministers and MPs should receive more remuneration for their work, Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi tells The Sunday Times in an interview today.

Dr Gonzi said: "I believe a minister should receive the salary he or she gets today, but on top of that also receive the parliamentary honorarium, because the minister is not just carrying out his function as a minister but is attending Parliament as much as - if not more than - other MPs."

In his first newspaper interview (see http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20080504/interview/a-plan-for-a-new-beginning) since the election, Dr Gonzi also says it is time to raise the €1,400 (Lm600) spending limit on candidates' election campaigns.

The Prime Minister sees sustainable development as the country's biggest challenge as he grapples with reforming the Malta Planning and Environment Authority.

"You've got to be very careful not to have a system that then stagnates the whole economy... I believe that, as a rule, Outside Development Zone applications should be turned down. However, we should have a transparent mechanism which allows certain types of development in ODZ, mostly agricultural in nature."

Dr Gonzi also says that in spite of having a one-seat majority, he will have a "strong" government with a "strong" programme that will last the full term.

"It would be a disaster for this country to go for an early election... For a country to move forward in the world we're living in today, political and economic stability are fundamental ingredients."

The Prime Minister also expresses concern about maintaining economic progress in the face of a global crisis and said planned income tax cuts may be staggered if necessary.