No hurry to pay new bills - unions

Eleven trade unions yesterday called on people "not to rush" to pay the new water and electricity bills pending further discussions they hope to have with the Prime Minister.

The unions threatened to take "further action" should Lawrence Gonzi not accept their request to schedule a meeting on the new energy bills by Friday. They did not specify what form that action might take.

But in a statement the Prime Minister insisted on his position and told the unions they should meet the regulatory authority instead.

"We are not taking this position lightly but we want to alleviate the exaggerated burden on our members and their families," the general secretary of the General Workers' Union, Tony Zarb said, adding that the members of the 11 unions covered a significant cross section of the population.

John Bencini, president of the Malta Union of Teachers, said: "People are starting to worry. Some are receiving two bills and are noticing an enormous difference... All we're asking for is a clear reply to unsolved queries in the name of social dialogue".

The two bills he referred to are those charging the old and new tariffs respectively.

Speaking in one voice, the 11 unions said they would not seek the clarifications from the Malta Resources Authority, as suggested by Dr Gonzi in a recent letter.

The Prime Minister had written to them two weeks ago in reply to their request to be given further clarifications about the new energy rates, saying the government would not object if they sought such information from the MRA.

The unions insisted yesterday that the regulator was never present during previous meetings on the tariffs held with the Prime Minister. They stressed that the regulator had a technical role that should have been fulfilled before the tariffs were announced and not afterwards. They also asked for updated Enemalta accounts and statistics.

"The unions insist that the regulator does not have political or social responsibilities in the field of social justice... That is the government's responsibility," said Paul Pace, president of the Malta Union of Midwives and Nurses (MUMN).

But in its reaction, the Office of the Prime Minister again insisted that the unions should address their queries to the MRA. The OPM highlighted the "intensive" meetings which the Prime Minister had held with the unions.

"Some of the unions present for these meetings are now asking for technical clarifications regarding figures that were presented. These technical clarifications should be given by the regulatory authority and nobody else," the statement said, adding that in this light the unions' statement that it was not worth going to the MRA for now "does not make sense".

Contrary to what the unions had said, the authority does not only have a technical function but is duty bound to promote consumer rights, it added.

The unions are questioning the number of people which the government estimates will benefit from eco reductions on their bills. According to a study they commissioned from economist Edward Scicluna, in fact, a substantial number of people, including one-and-two person households, most of whom are pensioners, would be excluded.

The exchange of letters followed a meeting last November between Dr Gonzi and representatives of 20 unions from which the latter initially emerged very positive. Soon afterwards, however, the unions split in their position on the final agreement published by the government.

One group, made up of the Union Ħaddiema Magħqudin, the Confederation of Maltese Trade Unions and others of its affiliates, insisted that the agreement made public by the Prime Minister was the one the unions had agreed to during the meeting they had with him.

The other group of 11 unions are seeking clarifications, saying yesterday they were offended by the fact that while they were discussing tariffs with consultants - as had been suggested by the government - the Administration went ahead and published a legal notice launching the tariffs with retroactive effect as of October 1.

Besides the GWU, the MUT and MUMN, the others are the Union of Cabin Crew, the Union Ħaddiema Bank Ċentrali, the Union Technical and Clerical Mepa, the Union Professjonisti Awtorità għall-Ambjent u Ppjanar, the University of Malta Academic Staff Association, the Airline Pilots Association, the Union Periti u Inġiniera Servizz Pubbliku and the Association of Airline Engineers.