Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi said this evening that he was pleased to confirm that the government and the opposition were in agreement that the best way forward for Malta Shipyards was privatisation.
What was important now was careful action to ensure that this exercise was successful, in the interest of the workers and the country.
Dr Gonzi was replying to a series of questions by members of the opposition in Parliament. The questions were made by Labour MPs Anglu Farrugia, Helena Halli and Joe Mizzi.
At one stage Dr Farrugia said he agreed with privatisation, later adding “in principle”.
Dr Gonzi said said the government remained confident that if things were done right, the dockyard could be an important element in the Maltese economy. However in the past the dockyard had depended heavily on government subsidies, absorbing a million euro in a few years, including written-off debt.
In view of the current economic scenario, the situation in the ship-repair industry and also the fact that, as things stood, no further government subsidies were possible after the end of this year, this was the best time to proceed with privatisation.
The government’s intention, Dr Gonzi said, was always for the dockyard to be able to stand on its own two feet. There was no doubt that it needed to be downsized in terms of the workforce, but that did not mean forced redundancies. Indeed, he was confident that if the government and the GWU worked well together, the best solutions could be achieved for the workers.
The government and the opposition were showing that there was consensus on privatisation, and all eyes, from both sides, were now on achieving the best for the workers and their families. Friday’s meeting with the GWU would seek to tackle this issue with the utmost sensitivity.
Finance Minister Tonio Fenech said the early retirement schemes which the government would propose would be voluntary and open to all workers.
He said he could confirm interest in the shipyard by a number of companies. That interest was not restricted to the yacht repair facility but the ship repair sector as well. This was the best time to proceed with privatisation, given growing demand for ship repair services internationally, Mr Fenech said.