I had not expected the Labour government to be in such a pitiful state just 12 months after the 1996 election. But the fact was that people were disillusioned and Alfred Sant was floundering. We had had our faults as a government, but at least we had a strategy and knew where we were going. Under Sant, Malta had no vision for the future. By now, it was painfully obvious there was no alternative to VAT or to EU membership, since all he was proposing was effectively a customs union which was already provided for in our association agreement.

We were urging him to accept the basic principles of VAT and offered our support if he changed tack on the EU. I was not saying these things for the sake of it. I knew the feeling within my parliamentary group, and meant every word. He steadfastly refused.

Meanwhile, his internal party problems were growing. Mintoff had for some time shown signs of disgruntlement. The two never liked each other and the rift was becoming more pronounced. Mintoff was openly expressing displeasure: firstly, because Sant never consulted him; secondly, because he claimed that certain conditions he had set before agreeing to stand as a candidate in the 1996 election were not being honoured.

Personally, I have always considered it a big mistake for a leader of a party to remain in parliament after leaving office. When one resigns, one should leave the political stage. I had resolved to do this long before I retired. Mintoff was breathing down Sant’s neck, which is the last thing any leader would want.

Matters came to a head when Labour presented the budget for 1998. Mintoff voted against his party on a procedural motion to regulate the budget debate and tore into the government after they refused to allow him to speak in the early part of the discussion… there was now concrete proof that the rumblings we had been hearing about were real.

Mintoff had been meeting Guido on and off, but then decided, with his usual urgency, that he wanted to see me. He declined an offer to meet at Guido’s home, so we went to L-Għarix. After showing us round and pointing out the damage he claimed was caused to the building by the construction of the power station, he eventually got to the point: he wanted us to take a common stand with him on the EU, in writing, to get negotiations going, and said we must stick to it come what may.

Displaying obvious reluctance, I said, ‘What would Sant have to say about such a thing?’ His response was typically combative; he asked me if I was afraid to bring down the government. When I told him I would do it at any moment if I had the numbers, he said he had no problem doing it himself; he had done it before and would do it again. I was astonished, but did not wish to get into government through any agreement with Mintoff. I wanted to force a change of policy on our own terms. Time would prove, however, that he was not bluffing.

Mintoff supported Labour in a second budget vote, enabling Sant to limp into the new year. At this time the prime minister was persistently being urged by his own colleagues to climb down and reduce the water and electricity rates, which Labour had raised after getting into government. The economy was stagnating, with little new investment. Meanwhile, inflation was running at 4.5 per cent and the number of people out of work reached 7,200. Yet Sant stuck to his guns. His position was weakened further when he lost his justice minister, Charles Mangion, who had failed to consult Cabinet when he recommended a pardon for a man convicted of drug possession.

We got a clear indication of how unpopular the government was becoming when we won 54 per cent of the vote in the local council elections, which was the best result we have ever had. From our opinion polls it was also emerging that a significant number of people had regretted not voting for the Nationalist Party in the previous general election. However, none of us imagined that a proposal to redevelop the Cottonera waterfront would be the straw that breaks the camel’s back.

Eddie – My Journey, published by Allied Publications and printed by Progress Press, is available for the pre-publication price of €37 from BDL Books, tel. 2138 0351 or www.bdlbooks.com. After the book’s launch on Friday, it will also be available from all major bookshops. Proceeds from the sale of the book are going to Dar tal-Providenza.