We love Malta, litter and all

Reading the excellent letters that appear in The Times, I see many bemoaning the litter and traffic problems besetting the islands.

I first visited Malta 53 years ago, and since 1996 my wife and I have visited the islands at least once every year.

What people fail to realise, I think, is that not only Malta, but the whole world has changed, and fortunately (or unfortunately, according to your views) the islands are no longer so isolated as they were half a century ago. I have to admit that I tend to idealise my memories of the Malta of the early 1950s, but at that time there was no "throw away" packaging to cause litter, the population was smaller and less mobile, and there was very little motor transport, apart from the route buses.

Malta has only changed in the same way as the rest of the world, and my wife and I don't worry about it. We still feel safe there, and we love the people and the islands.