Somebody has approved a performance bonus for the managers of Arms Ltd, despite the shameful performance of this company, Opposition leader Joseph Muscat said in parliament this evening.
Speaking in his reply to the Budget Speech, Dr Muscat said that while the government had little control on oil prices, the people were paying for incompetence, not least the incompetence of Arms Ltd and its inadequate but well paid management.
He said that what was happening in the water and electricity bills, and the management of Arms Ltd. showed the need for a proper regulator and not the Resources Authority.
Dr Muscat said that the increase in the duty on fuel announced in the Budget had already eroded half of the cost of living adjustment. Such increases would also further erode Malta’s industrial competitiveness and this would mean job losses.
The Budget, he said, had also, without mentioning anything, raised the water and electricity bills by a total of €11 million because the energy allowance given this year was not being repeated.
If Malta was emerging from the recession, then surely the government could have afforded the allowance for next year as well?
Furthermore, why had the budget on energy vouchers been reduced to €4 million from €7 million?
Last year it was announced that the WSC would absorb the costs of the sewerage tax. But now that the subsidy to the WSC had been reduced, where would the money come from?
Dr Muscat reiterated the Opposition’s criticism on the granting of the power station extension contract to BWSC and said the police commissioner could act on the corruption allegations without anybody's prompting.
The government, he said, could not be taken seriously on its fight against corruption.
The Whistleblower Act is a step forward but it was not enough and only protected people in cases of future corruption.
The surprise of this Budget, Dr Muscat said, was the VAT increase in tourist accommodation to 7% from 5%. The fact that the governemnt had since said it would consider a transitional provision showed how this measure was not well thought out and no consultation had been made.
He hoped this transitional measure would come about, but the damage had been done.
The governemnt had shown that it did not appreciate the importance of tourism. Indeed, tourism was not under a minister but under a parliamentary secretary burdened with several other responsibilities.
He hoped that agreement would be reached and implemented What had happened to the €5 million scheme to help hoteliers in their energy costs?
Turning to Air Malta, Dr Muscat observed that the government had said it would consult the Opposition on the restructuring of the airline. The Opposition was prepared to listen, although the decisions had already been taken, because of the government's mismanagement.
The Opposition would listen and offer its help, but it would not be an accomplice, Dr Muscat said. The government should not see Air Malta as a millstone. It needed to think strategically in the national interest. One should consider the cost for the country of not having a national airline. This company had never received a cent from taxpayers but always contributed to the economy. The workers had already shouldered their burden and could not take more. The burden, now, had to be shouldered by the people higher up.
What the Opposition was requesting, as a gesture of good will, was an independent investigation into the wrong decisions taken by Air Malta, including the RJs and AzzurAir, Dr Muscat said. The Opposition wanted to know the government's startegy for the airline. Would it sell it or privatise it? The Opposition also wanted access to correspondence between the government and the EU.