Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi said today that knee-jerk reactions were the worst thing that could take place in the wake of the recent fireworks factory explosions.

Speaking on Radio 101 in an interview recorded on Friday, Dr Gonzi said fireworks were part of Maltese culture and tradition, as was the case for several other countries. There was no denying, however, that this was a dangerous tradition which had cost people their lives.

Expressing his condolences to the relatives of the victims, Dr Gonzi said the worst thing one could do was to have knee-jerk reactions.

The first priority, he said, was to have an in-depth analysis of what had taken place, including the quality of the materials used in fireworks and how they were purchased. Then one had to look into procedures, practices and safety measures at the places where fireworks were made.

Other issues included the way fireworks were let off.

Dr Gonzi recalled that after a long consultation process, new controls were announced only a few weeks ago to improve safety, particularly where fireworks were let off. This process would now be continued so that Malta could react in the best way possible to the recent tragedies.

Decisions, he said, would be taken once experts had also made their recommendations.

Opposition leader Joseph Muscat in an opinion piece in The Sunday Times today made his own recommendations and spoke of his own experiences as the son of a man involved in fireworks.

See

http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20100912/local/fireworks-muscat-makes-proposals-speaks-of-his-fear-of-discovering-his-father-is-dead