The time has come for the government to take decisions on Air Malta on the same model as successfully adopted for Enemalta, Prime Minister Joseph Muscat said today.

In Enemalta the government brought in foreign (Chinese) investors who acquired a third of the company for some €320 million. The government, as the majority shareholder in Air Malta, has over the past months been holding talks with several airlines interested in becoming a strategic partner. 

Dr Muscat said at St Paul's Bay this morning that in the same way as was done for Enemalta, fresh foreign investment would be ploughed into Air Malta while ensuring that the airline remained Maltese, the workers retained their jobs, while the company itself remained sustainable and tourism continued to benefit.

He had no doubt, Dr Muscat said, that when decisions were taken, some would try to sow doubt. But one only needed to remember that doubt was also sown when Air Malta was set up 40 years ago. 

"I am determined to see Air Malta back on its feet and functioning as one of the motors powering the economy," Dr Muscat said.

File photo

Earlier, Dr Muscat said a basic question which needed to be asked was whether people were better off now than they were 30 months ago.

Factors to consider, he said, was how people were continuing to enjoy lower electricity tariffs, petrol and diesel prices were going down, and living standards would continue to rise. 

Those who claimed that economic growth was not trickling down to ordinary people were mistaken. The biggest single measure taken by this government was to reduce the electricity tariffs, and ordinary people benefited first. 

The government was unashamedly pro-business while also being pro-workers. One area of concern, he said, was about workers' conditions in hotels. Hoteliers complained that they were not finding Maltese workers, but were they offering the right conditions? 

Highlighting other government achievements, Dr Muscat said next month pensioners would enjoy the first pensions rise in 25 years; wages were now 8% higher than under the former government, income tax was down and inflation was under control, meaning purchasing power was up.

Dr Muscat said the Opposition was 'all over the place' in the American University project. The PN first said it was in favour of the project then when NGOs complained about environmental aspects the PN changed direction. But it was not clear what they disagreed with. Criticism had been made about the fact that the investor was Jordanian, forgetting Smart City's Dubai investors. It was worth remembering that groundrent for the university would be 50 times higher than SmartCity which was basically a real estate project. 

Dr Muscat said the project to become a university took several stages, starting from a higher education institution. Had the project been a university from the outset, the government would have been criticised for that. He was confident, he stressed, that the country would benefit greatly from this project. He would not be surprised if one day the PN would claim credit for it, he said.

Dr Muscat insisted that integration of people with disabilities in the workforce needed to happen as from next year, as announced in the Budget.

He was informed, he said, that employers had sought a warrant of injunction in court. 

Some could argue about technical problems, he said, That was something which could be discussed and resolved, but the principle of giving dignity to people with disabilities through employment had to come about.

The government could then be able to place more focus on people with disabilities who could not have any job whatsoever.