MEPA has granted the necessary permits for a bouy for cruise liners off Xlendi, Gozo Minister Giovanna Debono has announced.

The facilities are expected to be in place within a few months although no specific date was given.

The laying of a bouy has been on the cards since 2006, when the Seabourne Pride anchored off Xlendi. Although a small number of other ships followed, their masters had complained that engines could not be switched off because the ships dragged anchor.

In September last year, then Transport Minister Censu Galea had said the government was developing plans to build a cruise liner quay on the outer part of the Mgarr breakwater in Gozo that would provide berthing facilities for 200-metre long liners, but nothing more was mentioned since.

Mrs Debono said today that the major challenges facing the tourism industry in Gozo were accessibility, marketing and seasonality, all of which were in the focus of the authorities. She pointed out that services by Gozo Channel have been considerably improved, including the opening of a new terminal in Mgarr, while Gozitan operators in the tourism industry were enjoying lower trading fees.