Waste of taxpayers’ money

The planned reconstruction of the Valletta breakwater bridge is another prime example of a waste of taxpayers’ money.

With that money, along with the money spent on the Gozo Channel ferries and Mġarr terminal and the still-to-be finished Ċirkewwa terminal, one could have paid for part of a bridge connecting Gozo to Malta. We would also no longer be looked at as a burden on Maltese taxpayers.

At present, two-thirds of working Gozitans are employed by the government; another good percentage have to commute every day from Gozo to Malta for work.

For our children who attend the university, we have to either rent or buy them a place in Malta where they can stay so they do not have to commute every day. We are not benefiting from the low-cost airlines in winter.

With higher fuel costs, Gozo Channel tickets are not going to get any cheaper.

The shops in Victoria that are leased are closing down one by one. Mġarr, Xlendi and Marsalforn are deserted. Three hotels have closed down over the past few years.

Malta Environment and Planning Authority policies for Gozo do not reflect future planning. There is no return on our investment in Gozo.

This is a trend that has been obvious for some time and that the present administration is blind to. So I ask, which bridge is needed most?