(Adds Transport Ministry's reaction)

A motion calling on the government to withdraw a call for car park tenders and open a wide and adequate consultation process with councils, constituted bodies and the public before taking a final decision has been moved by Opposition Transport spokesman Joe Sammut.

Transport Malta earlier this week published calls for tenders to operate 34 public car park sites currently administered by licensed car park attendants.

The opposition's motion can be read in the pdf link below.

TRANSPORT MINISTRY'S REACTION

In a reaction, the Transport Ministry said the motion was aimed at putting parkers, who were among the most precarious workers, in a worse situation.

Parkers had no job security and their job depended on a licence which the government could stop renewing whenever it wanted. They had no protection and depended solely on the government’s goodwill.

The government and the Union Haddiema Maghqudin, which represented them, wanted to change the situation and provide them with security by giving a 10-year tender for each car park permitting parkers to transfer their job to one on contract.