This time three years ago, in the middle of an election campaign, we were being told that cheaper energy tariffs for businesses and families were not possible. We were being told that a Youth Guarantee would be a waste of time and money. We were being told that unemployment would skyrocket under Labour. People would be queuing at job centres. Taxes would rise and businesses would close shop. We were being told the economy would collapse and that the country’s deficit would explode.
Until a year-and-a-half ago, the Opposition was still hoping this would happen. Eventually they had to face reality. Back to the drawing board they went.
Public discourse today is unproductive and partisan politics has taken over. Take my area – education and employment. I’d love to have a good policy debate about how we can help teachers engage students in a digital world or how we can tackle underemployment and the skills gap in the economy. But you will not get that in Parliament. All that is on offer is bickering. I think the public has had enough of this and they would like something more substantial.
At the end of the day, the obvious question is this: who is delivering the goods? This administration has outperformed expectations in many areas. Be it the economy, finances or employment the results are there to be seen. The numbers don’t lie.
This government has delivered on its promises. And that includes the promise of involving people from all sides of the political spectrum. In the ministry and public entities I’m responsible for we have people from different backgrounds and political affiliations, both within the civil service and in public board appointments. Without fanfare or grandstanding, these people are getting on with their jobs and delivering services for the benefit of the public.
Could we do more about governance? Yes, of course. Most would agree about this. Any discourse about government should be taken in the context of improving the processes in departments and increasing transparency. I am four square behind the implementation plan proposed by the Finance Ministry some months back, which will move manual processes online and increase transparency.
When processes are digitised and decision-making is transparent there is increased efficiency and people can be held accountable as there is a fingerprint on every decision. Any set-up needs checks and balances but governance done right means the public gets the best possible service. Change must happen. I am not exaggerating when I say that basic online procedures, present in the business world since the early 2000s, are only now starting to see the light of day.
From the day Malta voted in favour of divorce, a new generation with bright, progressive ideas has taken over
If the Opposition wants to talk about governance it should tell us why it left these government departments with dot-matrix printers (God knows where we find the ink cartridges) and Windows 95 accounting software. You don’t leave things medieval, with papers and files, because you want to have good governance.
This is the situation we found in 2013 and this government is working very hard to modernise systems and procedures. Our mentality should be a business-driven one. This is tangible change in good governance that will deliver value for the public.
This is a government that has achieved a good deal in a short space of time, and which is ready to take on the responsibility to improve things further. The country has changed a lot in recent years. From the day the country voted in favour of divorce, a new generation with bright, progressive ideas and higher standards has taken over. This is very promising.
We have gone from a country that didn’t have divorce in its civil code to one that boasts the most progressive civil rights agenda in Europe. Evolve or die is a Darwinian concept that rings true in society, the economy and politics.
We have to make choices. We can seize the future and continue down the path of progressive change or we can go back to days where the government simply would not act on anything, from civil rights to economic decisions. Civil rights, such as gay marriage, is still a big question mark for Simon Busuttil even though everyone and their dog have moved with the times.
This is a government that thrives on optimism, on the willingness to bring about change and progress. A government that takes decisions rather than just enjoys the ride. These decisions may not always be perfect, but the drive is there. The will to modernise is being felt like never before.
As this administration moves into its mid-term, my choice is to keep listening to students, parents, educators, employers and all those wanting to achieve more for Malta.
To offer a better education to our children, to provide better employment prospects to our youngsters, to assist more those in difficult social environments, to support local businesses, to strengthen our communities, to reinforce civil liberties and to help create a better future for all. To do all this, together we have to deliver where it really matters.
Evarist Bartolo is Minister for Education and Employment.