It was undoubtedly most welcome news to hear of the recent announcement that Ryanair is to have a base here in Malta and finalised, courtesy of an agreement signed with the government. This agreement allows for the provision of an aircraft being based here in Malta, with the possible addition of a further aircraft, and also includes the airline's addition of a further six new routes originating from Malta to European destinations.

The knock-on effect of more flights is a much needed fillip to our vital tourist industry as obviously these new routes will potentially attract more passengers and visitors to Malta, with the added bonus of further job creations in servicing and maintaining the aircraft based here. However, all these glad tidings come at a premium and as far as I can gather it is the taxpayer who bears the brunt of the cost and ultimately foots the bill of this agreement, thereby enabling private enterprise to generate more profits without having to contribute anything towards securing such lucrative contracts.

The main beneficiary of this agreement with Ryanair is incontrovertibly the Malta International Airport (MIA) per se. But may one ask what precisely did the MIA management contribute towards clinching such a profitably rewarding agreement and what role, function or incentives did they provide to Ryanair to secure this deal?

I ask these questions as in the not too distant past Ryanair was in negotiations with the MIA management team to reach a determination on an almost identical agreement to the one now signed with the government but pulled out of these negotiations citing irretrievable/irreconcilable differences with the CEO of Ryanair, Michael Cawley. He accused the MIA management team of behaving in an "autocratic" manner and "intransigent" in refusing to lower their landing fees and service charges (which Ryanair claimed to be the highest in Europe on a like-for-like basis). So what has occurred, one wonders, for such a dramatic volte-face and change of heart by Ryanair? Has the government, unlike the MIA, acquiesced to Ryanair's demands and made concessions to enable this agreement to be reached, demands which pivotally included lower fees and tariffs among others? Who will subsidise these obvious concessions to the agreement criteria demanded by Ryanair?

So while the news is good it is tempered by how much the government has conceded to secure this deal and how much the taxpayer will pay to bankroll such an agreement. For it is manifestly apparent that the principal beneficiary, the MIA itself, has contributed nothing to this agreement yet will potentially reap the greatest financial rewards. Once again , it appears that the capitalist mantra will be chanted - that of privatise any gains, socialise any losses. I for one cannot understand why the MIA did not contribute anything to secure this vital deal when it is patently apparent that they alone will benefit the most.