The Prime Minister this morning announced that the government would introduce tougher penalties for illegal hunting.
He also revealed plans for a 'compromise solution' on the holding of local council elections. In an immediate reaction, the PN said there could be no compromise on the holding of elections. (See below)
The move follows initial government indications that it wanted to postpone the elections by five years, for financial reasons, a proposal which ran into strong PN opposition.
Dr Muscat said at a political conference that a public consultation process had showed a 'convergence of ideas' and the government would therefore issue proposals which he believed would find the approval of the majority of the people.
The proposals, he said, would be a compromise which would respect democratic mandates while introducing a scenario which was more sustainable.
IVF SUCCESS
Earlier, Dr Muscat announced that the first baby has been born following the introduction of IVF services within the public health sector.
He congratulated the mother and said this was the result of a battle in the past months and years for the service to be available in the state hospital. Had that not happened, it was likely that this family would not have had an offspring, Dr Muscat said.
He said further efforts would be held to improve the service.
Speaking at a Labour political activity in Rabat PL club, Dr Muscat also congratulated Karmenu Vella for his performance when he was grilled by MEPs in Brussels.
His good performance had happened despite whispers to the contrary by some who had actually said they were supporting him, he said.
"With friends like this, who needs enemies?" he remarked.
THE BUDGET
Turning to the Budget, Dr Muscat said the government would seek to reward hard work and ensure there was no increased dependence on social services, or abuse of such services.
This would be a Budget based on responsibly taking the right decisions.
The Budget would be presented against a background of an economy which was among the best performers in the EU, even though somebody else had claimed that Malta would need to seek a bailout.
The economy was moving forward thanks to various government measures, including the reduction of utility tariffs, incentives to business, assistance to first-time property buyers to kick start the construction sector, and free child-care to help working women. For the past eight months, job-creation was on the increase and unemployment had dropped to the lowest level ever recorded.
The incentives given to encourage people to work had given new hope to many, Dr Muscat said, but the government would not tolerate registration for work by 'the bummers' - people who were intent only on 'stealing' social benefits without wanting to work.
Resuming his comments on the economy, Dr Muscat said the EU calculated that the number of SMEs would increase by 1,500 next year, creating more than 4,500 jobs. The government wanted to ensure that the people had the skills to take up those jobs.
The decisions which the government had to take, Dr Muscat said, included the bus service. The government would base its decision on value for money, because that was what the people expected, Dr Muscat said.
HUNTING - IT WAS A RACE TO THE BOTTOM
Turning to hunting, Dr Muscat said no government had been fairer with the hunters than the present one. It had given them what was taken for them, including the reopening of the trapping season. But he expected seriousness from the hunters.
The way things were going in this hunting season was 'a race to the bottom'. Every day was a day against the genuine hunters, he said, with the poachers busy in illegal hunting, some for commercial reasons.
His decision to suspend the season was meant to convey the message that the government had kept its promises but one could not continue with a situation where it was only up to the police to find the illegal hunters. This had to be a team effort.
Those involved in hunting knew who the criminals were and they needed to weed them out. It was useless to say that they were not members of the association, or they were not licensed. They had to be identified and stopped from harming Malta's name and reputation, Dr Muscat said.
The government will be stronger against illegal hunting, he added, and it would be announcing heftier fines and tougher regulations against those convicted of illegal hunting.
Those who thought that a €5,000 fine was high had not seen anything yet, he said.
PN: NO COMPROMISE ON ELECTIONS
In a reaction, the PN said the issue over local council elections was needlessly raised by the prime minister three months ago.
The PN said there could be no compromise with democratic principles such as elections.
The elections were mandated by law and any prime minister in any democratic country observed their timetable. In trying to postpone the elections, Dr Muscat was being divisive, the PN said.