A Labour government would launch an unprecedented fight against bureaucracy, Opposition leader Joseph Muscat told businessmen yesterday.

“Your plea is clear and simple: Let us work. We’ll use this as a guideline on which to base our policy on economic growth when drawing up the electoral manifesto.

“You are also saying that bureaucracy is hindering your work. Bureaucracy brings about corruption,” Dr Muscat said as he pledged to wage war against it.

He was speaking during a conference on the future challenges of Maltese businesses, organised as part of the Labour Party’s congress.

Businessmen from various industries spoke about the “two monsters” they faced: Enemalta and the Malta Environment and Planning Authority.

High water and electricity bills were making many businesses struggle, they said, while delays at the planning authority led businessmen to desperation.

The vice-president of the Chamber of Commerce, Enterprise and Industry, William Wait gave the example of a German investor who wanted to open a factory in Albert Town about five years ago.

It took him more than four years to obtain a permit and he ended up opening his factory, which employs 100 people, in Hungary.

Speaking about the manufacturing industry, he said the future lay in cutting bureaucracy, focusing on competitiveness and changing mentality to better understand the needs of the sector.

All stakeholders, including the Government and the Opposition, had to be on board.

Businessman Reginald Fava spoke about the problems faced by the retail industry.

It was the backbone of the economy but it was “abandoned and trampled on”.

The sector employed 33,000 people, 10,000 more than the manufacturing industry, but it was not given the importance it deserved. It received no help with energy bills or rent subsidies, he said.

Malta Hotels and Restaurants Association president Anthony Zahra said the Nationalist and Labour parties should put politics aside and set up a national council “to chart and execute a long-term strategy to make Enemalta a dynamic and efficient company”.

“Enemalta should be tackled on a national basis. The problem is enormous and needs a national effort,” he said, echoing the statement he made during the release of a tourism survey on Thursday.

He called on the Government to revert to a five per cent tax on accommodation from seven per cent.

Closing the conference, Dr Muscat said that during the debate three major points emerged: businesses were calling for the Government to let them work; they wanted action to diminish bureaucracy; and they felt energy bills were too high.

Reducing utility bills would be a priority for a Labour government, Dr Muscat said, and he believed that doing so would benefit the quality of life of families, businesses and the economy.