The sexual health policy was riddled with misconceptions on sex and the lack of use of condoms, among other issues, had contributed to the increase in sexually-transmitted diseases and also to the number of women travelling abroad to have abortions, opposition social policy spokesman Michael Farrugia said yesterday.
He accused the government of not providing an education free of taboo. There was a rampant use of drugs and alcohol, obesity in children, and a rise in smokers. Although the government was aware of these issues, it had closed down its weight-reducing clinics and anti-smoking clinics and aerobic classes.
Dr Farrugia asked about plans to develop oncology services at Boffa Hospital, and whether the anti-A H1N1 vaccination programme would be available by December.
The government had done nothing to restore the architectural structure of the Addolorata Cemetery, which had been left to decay further.
Dr Farrugia said families were experiencing delays in the payment of children's allowances and sickness benefits. The spending power of families had decreased despite the COLA increase of €5.80.
Children's rights were fundamentally important and deserved effective protection.
Respiratory health was not being adequately addressed, with the government defaulting from addressing the black-dust phenomenon.
There was not enough investment in the procurement of new medicines and in the provision of medications for Alzheimer's Disease and osteoporosis in their early stages.
The government had badly tackled the backlog for treatment and operations by addressing only numbers. The government had no plans to implement health services efficiently.
Lack of hospital beds was exacerbated by the lack of services within the community for the elderly and lack of residences for the elderly. He said that the creation of 150 beds a year was not sufficient to meet the country's demands, and the government must provide more services within the community, increase residences and provide night shelters.
Dr Farrugia queried the delay in revising mental health legislation, and criticised the university for shutting its doors to those applicants who although qualified had not been accepted for the nursing course.
Earlier, opposition spokesman on employment Anġlu Farrugia called for the resignation of Enemalta chairman Alex Tranter for having implied sabotage during the last electricity outage. He said that that was not the way to treat one's own workforce.
Despite the monetary stimulus to keep jobs during the recession, workers in the tourism sector had decreased by more than 400. The government had spent more than €21 million in advertising and promoting Malta, but had taken no action to safeguard jobs in tourism like France had done. How had the tourist outlets in the south of Malta benefited from all this?
Dr Farrugia said that the likes of pensioners were finding it difficult to cope with the cost of living. They had to make good for the number of medicines which were not available at government pharmacies. Free health services introduced by Labour governments had been dismantled.
He asked whether the government was going to create a mega-authority to wrap up a number of entities. If this was the case, he asked that employees be assured of their job security.
The government had followed a "money no problem" attitude for the past 20 years. Labour governments had protected Malta's finances, but these had been squandered by successive Nationalist administrations. Labour had ended poverty, but Gonzi PN had depleted the country's assets and increased liabilities.
Dr Justyne Caruana (PL) criticised the government for dragging its feet to increase paid maternity leave, and said that this would come about only if the EU imposed it. Malta had slipped on the gender equality index and the Budget was not a gender-responsive one.
She called for amendments to legislation on domestic violence so that the perpetrator of violence, rather than the victim, would be removed from the home. At the same time the maximum period of residence for victims in shelters needed to be readdressed.
Opposition spokesman on health Anthony Zammit criticised the lack of funding for medical research. He asked the government to create such situation that would entice Maltese doctors overseas to return to Malta.
Mr Agius Decelis, opposition spokesman on generational solidarity, said the much-vaunted "complete" cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) to pensioners am-ounted to just Lm0.12 a day. The upcoming increases in utility tariffs and their passing on to customers would indirectly increase the cost of living, as would higher rents, gas prices and having to buy medicines that were out of stock.
The award of the complete COLA would also mean loss of benefits because no ceiling had been raised. Malta needed a whole new study on the benefits system to make sure they helped those most in need, he concluded.
Labour MP Roderick Galdes also contributed to the debate.