We have two interesting political personalities in the fray at the moment, not to mention others involved in the Sliema local council mess. I am specifically referring to Adrian Vassallo and Cyrus Engerer.

To start with the second. I met this gentleman once on a TV discussion the day the divorce referendum result was announced. He came across as both pleasant and, yes, “moderate”, which is a current buzzword. “Progressive”, I don’t know. “Liberal” (such a common word nowadays, whatever they all mean), I suppose so, being an open gay and this gains him my salute, for being open, of course. I was impressed by his sense of balance and unprejudiced reasoning.

I do not know Dr Vassallo personally but he has also won my respect. He has taken a very strong position on an issue, on which I happen to agree with him, and, in my opinion, is a man of principle and has come out with flying colours.

What particularly impressed me was his declaration that he is aware that his position in the Labour Party, which he has espoused (for better or for worse but not “until death do us part”), will now be compromised (not “may” mark you) but that he could not care and for this I salute him too.

I would remark, however, that I also admire the trust he has in his constituents, whom he has appeared to have served so well. This irrespective of his parliamentary attendance sheet. Given the poor, and, I would say despicable, treatment given to MPs who are truly and genuinely (and I stress the last word) devoted to their constituents, I cannot blame him for giving his priority to the field rather than the stable.

As a parliamentary reporter many years gone by, I have witnessed no less than a Prime Minister sitting in the House but totally ignoring proceedings, with his eyes literally resting on his copy of the Financial Times and his spectacles held above his head, no doubt inspecting the indexes that held his stocks and shares – only to shoot up and be rude and aggressive about something that he probably had not even heard. That’s history.

But how many MPs can today truly and honestly say that they follow all proceedings attentively? And have a look at the House of Commons debates. There aren’t even enough green seats to take all members. They all stand at the periphery of the House to grunt some approval or otherwise at Prime Minister’s Question Time or on other auspicious or important occasions. On other occasions, the House is largely empty.

I must throw my lot in with GASP, which is the Paceville action group, and congratulate my colleague, Anthony Farrugia, for this noble and worthy initiative.

Paceville has become a veritable headache and dangerous at that. What should be a place of entertainment, boisterous as it may be, for our children, is a risk for their safety, not to say their lives. The mecca of Malta’s youth attraction, local and foreign, just has to be policed adequately. Would we ever consider closing it down? Not on the agenda. But at this rate it is becoming a no-go zone. Even in my youth, in other areas of Sliema and St Julians, we had squabbles and bullying but it now seems to be going too far.

From my experience in foreign capitals (mainly) I have learnt that places of entertainment, mostly in open spaces, are heavily policed. Even normal public areas. For example, I have been to Milan a couple of times in the last months. Piazza del Duomo is not a place of youth entertainment as Carabinieri vans can still be spotted there.

The same can be said to police presence in central London. This does not constitute a police state, as has been erroneously hinted at by the Minister of Justice. Police officers stand there quietly and calmly, adequately armed. But their presence alone is a deterrent in itself. Should their intervention be required for whatever reason, it will be swift and effective.

There are, of course, isolated incidents in Paceville on an individual basis of disagreement, to put it mildly. But what is most worrying is the presence of armed gangs of youths, prowling and looking for a fight. Alcohol and drugs (though inevitable, I suppose) do not help. It would seem that the police – and these should be specially assigned and not come from the St Julians police station complement – are totally inadequate. Should we wait for further injuries, if not deaths, to take action?