Opposition leader Adrian Delia said on Sunday that the benefits of Malta’s economic growth were not being felt by the whole population.

Speaking during an interview on PN radio, Dr Delia said 70,000 people struggled to make it to the end of the month on their pay.

He accused the government of not having a plan to help these people and emphasised that the government had an obligation to ensure the benefits of Malta’s economic growth were felt by all.

The Opposition leader said government debt had increased by €500 million over the past few years, reaching €6 billion. He said economic growth was largely being driven by population growth.

Dr Delia again accused the government of overcharging consumers for their electricity consumption.

Hundreds of electricity bill samples gathered by the PN consistently showed 80 per cent of consumers were being overcharged, Dr Delia said. If the authorities failed to act, the PN would, he said.

Financial services

Turning to the financial services sector, Dr Delia accused the government of endangering the livelihoods of thousands of employees. Dr Delia said Malta’s reputation as a financial services sector had been destroyed over the last five years.

Both the MFSA and FIAU were being investigated by the EU and its institutions, he said. Despite this, the government did not want to fix the damage it had inflicted.

He accused the government of systematically undermining Malta’s integrity in the financial services sector. Dr Delia vowed that the PN would relentlessly work to clean up Malta’s reputation and strengthen the sector.

Investors did not want to be associated with a country where clear corruption cases were not investigated, he said.

Migration 

Asked about the Aquarius migrant boat controversy, Dr Delia said the PN would back the government when it was in conformity with international law. Those not abiding by this principle were not speaking in the party’s name, he said.

He again repeated his assertion that Malta was not a normal country, given numerous government ministers’ failures to shoulder responsibility for their actions.

Dr Delia accused Justice Minister Owen Bonnici of painting a false picture about improved efficiency in the courts. He said the government had included divorce cases, which were usually resolved within a few months, in statistics about the time taken to conclude court hearings. This, he said, gave the false impression that court cases were being resolved quicker.

The Opposition leader said the government wanted to weaken the courts, as evidenced by the appointment of a number of judges with backgrounds in the Labour Party.

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