The local bus operators were trying to delay the signing of the public transport agreement with a Spanish company to continue making money, Prime Minister Joseph Muscat charged yesterday.

He said he was informed Island Buses Malta, a Maltese consortium, had turned to the courts because they were contesting the handover would take place over a number of weeks, when they were under the impression it would happen overnight.

The court has granted a temporary injunction preventing the government from entering into a contract with Autobuses de Leon, which has been selected to run the bus service from January.

The injunction was requested by the competing bidder which claims the tender by the Spanish firm did not respect the conditions laid down in the call for expressions of interest.

Speaking on the radio discussion programme Għandi Xi Ngħid, Dr Muscat said the government was learning from experience. It did not want to go through a repeat of the Arriva takeover, and therefore, the transition was going to take place over a number of weeks.

The longer the contract was postponed, the more money the Maltese consortium earned because the government would have to continue using its service. Therefore, the consortium had an interest in delaying the contract, he said.

Turning to the controversial decision to install smart meters at the illegal Armier boathouses, Dr Muscat said he had made it very clear that this move would mean tenants would not get a title on the property.

A number of the boathouse owners were stealing electricity and this had to stop until a solution was found. People had been given time to apply for the service and enforcement would start in the coming days, Dr Muscat promised.