GRTU directs members not to to pay portion of their power bills

The GRTU, as expected, has issued directives to its members not to pay that part of their utility bill which will go towards subsidising the capping of the surcharge for large enterprises.

The directive was announced by GRTU president, Paul Abela, who said this afternoon that the GRTU was not against assistance to large enterprises, but that should not be at the expense of SMEs.

He said that if the tariffs announced by the government were actually introduced, the GRTU would advise its members on the percentage which they should not pay since it cross-subsidised large establishments.

Mr Abela insisted that the tariffs, even as revised yesterday, were still unacceptably high.

He also urged the political parties not to politicise the issue.

GRTU Director-General Vince Farrugia said that the chamber had calculated that most SMEs would see their bills rise by €9.03 per week and not by €5.50 as Infrastructure Minister Austin Gatt claimed yesterday.