The General Workers Union was the only social partner to come to the defence of the Prime Minister yesterday in a rowdy meeting that discussed the government’s proposal to expand the Malta Council for Social and Economic Development.

Lawrence Gonzi and Minister for Public Dialogue Chris Said were greeted by a barrage of criticism from the other social partners over their failure to consult them before proposing to admit three new members to the MCESD.

“This is village politics. This is not the way to do things and we told the Prime Minister that much. He is treating the council like a talking shop,” one of the social partners said following the meeting.

In an unusual reversal of roles, the GWU, usually critical of a Nationalist government, praised it for its decision, imploring the Prime Minister not to let the other social partners influence him.

The meeting of the MCESD had been requested by its members, the social partners, after they learnt of a government plan to make space on the council for trade union confederation Forum and representatives of Gozo and civil society.

Earlier this week the government announced it would move amendments to the law to allow this to happen when Parliament reconvenes on Monday.

Forum had long been campaigning for inclusion on the council, arguing that it was unjust to leave out a body representing 11 unions and 12,000 members. It has been supported in its lobbying by the GWU.

But members of the council, bar the GWU, gave Dr Gonzi and Dr Said a piece of their mind over their failure to consult them on the move, saying they had steamrolled over the council.

“It is truly ironic how the ministry responsible for the MCESD is called Ministry for Public Consultation but then, something as simple as a council expansion is not discussed beforehand,” another social partner said when contacted.

Sources said the social partners reminded Dr Gonzi that he had piloted the MCESD law in 2001, when he was minister for social policy, and there had then been agreement that changes to the composition of the council should be agreed upon first at council level.

They pointed out that this had been the government’s stand when Forum and the GWU were insisting that the former be given a seat.

The government had however shifted its stance after Forum was recognised on an international level by being accepted as a member of the European Trade Union Confederation. This reality, said Dr Gonzi at the time, had to be addressed.

The social partners yesterday demanded to see the Bill before it is presented to Parliament.

Dr Gonzi agreed to them a copy by tomorrow and await their feedback by Tuesday, which he would then propose as amendments between the first and second readings of the Bill.

“It is evident that the Prime Minister was ill-advised,” one social partner said, still angry at the way the government tackled this issue.

He said it was the council that should set the criteria of who qualifies to sit on it and who doesn’t.

The social partners were particularly averse to the introduction of a regional context to the council, saying that once a ­representative of Gozo as a region was accepted, other regional ­committees such as one for the north or the south could expect to have an automatic right to sit on the council.

Dr Said defended the government’s decision after the ­meeting, saying the discussion had been underway for three years and that “someone had to decide”.

“We have been discussing expanding the council for three years. We strived to reach consensus among social partners for three years but the discussion cannot be never-ending. Someone had to decide. Now social partners have the proposed amendment and we are awaiting their feedback,” he said.

The Opposition has been lukewarm about the proposed amendment, which came 15 months after the government voted down a Labour motion ­proposing the very same revision. Labour said the move showed the government was acting on ­convenience and not with ­conviction.