Tag: Labour government
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Mono-rail project estimated to cost 30% of GDP: Minister Clyde Caruana
Yesterday in Parliament, Finance Minister Clyde Caruana reiterated his position on the proposed monorail project by the Labour government, saying that he would only approve the project if extensive studies were presented. So far, the Minister said, no such studies have been presented. The Minister also said that the project is estimated to cost up…
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Economy Minister presents social enterprise bill – but definition of social enterprise remains missing
Yesterday in Parliament, Economy Minister Silvio Schembri presented a new law regulating social enterprises. This new legal classification, the Minister said, will be used by organisations which operate commercially but not for profit including in the social and cultural fields. The bill was presented yesterday in parliament and can be read here but the definition…
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Breaking the bank to get elected
There is a very good reason why first-world economies don’t use populist measures: they don’t work. Labour seems to believe that is re-inventing the wheel by executing a populist subsidy policy when these kind of policies are already widely applied in many third-world countries including in Egypt and Pakistan. Finance Minister Clyde Caruana has changed…
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Labour’s Zeitgeist in one image
Just to be clear, I don’t know if the two individuals in this image are related to each other — they are both Caruana, but Caruana is also one of the most popular surnames in Malta, along with Borg and Camilleri. This image is, however, interesting because it perfectly represents Labour’s Zeitgeist during the current…
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The discussion about punching journalists is redundant: the situation is much more serious (and complex)
It is very clear at this stage that the Labour government, with its myopic, insular and populist ideology, is reducing the debate about protecting journalism into a redundant discussion about higher penalties for punching a journalist. Journalists are clearly falling into this trap. There is no objection to increasing penalties for punching journalists, and clearly…
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Foreign affairs as a party affair
Malta’s delegation at the United Nations General Assembly has been an uneventful party affair with a sizeable delegation of up to 12 people including the Prime Minister’s wife and daughter, the Foreign Affairs Minister and two other Ministers, Silvio Schembri and Ian Borg, with their permanent secretaries, along with other officials and propaganda personnel. The…
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The government’s candidate? Leonard Caruana’s rapid rise in the Judiciary
The promotion of Magistrate Leonard Caruana to Judge raises serious suspicions of government’s interference in the Judicial selection process. A Judge in Malta is selected through the Judicial Appointments Committee, a subcommittee of the Commission for the Administration of Justice, and is formally appointed by the President of Malta. The Judicial Appointments Committee is currently…
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Labour’s campaign in defence of Yorgen Fenech’s jurors
The initial reaction by the Prime Minister and the Labour government to Yorgen Fenech’s verdict was a call for “prudence” and a barrage of litanies about Labour’s reforms in justice. The reaction has now developed into a position in defence of the jurors, support for the Attorney-General, who has a track record of cover-ups and…
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Justice Minister defends Yorgen Fenech’s jurors and jury system
Justice Minister Clifton Grima made a statement earlier today defending the jurors in Yorgen Fenech’s trial and also the jury system, saying that just because some people don’t like a verdict, it doesn’t mean that the system doesn’t work, and that we should not make suppositions but allow the justice system to work. He boasted…
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Prime Minister announces to bulldoze through press reform with new restrictions
Earlier today, at the Labour Party’s political rally, Prime Minister Robert Abela announced that his government will go ahead with its long-proposed press reform, which will introduce new restrictions against journalists. The new restrictions include limitations concerning the private lives of individuals, which will be prohibited by law. The Prime Minister is presenting the law…
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Paying for the hubris of the construction of industry
It is with great pride and bombast that last week the government announced that, in the upcoming budget, public funds will be allocated to a scheme which will refund the cost of property damage inflicted by construction works and construction contractors. Under the new scheme, the Building and Construction Authority will compensate affected homeowners for…
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Are you entertained yet?
The latest update by Energy Minister Miriam Dalli on the recent power-cuts is that she is in deep and pensive thought. This is all you are going to get from the Energy Minister after a Summer of power-cuts and heat-induced deaths, apart from further press conferences reminding us about the biggest quadrillion-trillion investment in electric-grid…