Ian Borg has sat down for a hard-talk interview on Times Talk - his first extensive one-on-one since his appointment as Tourism Minister last November.

During the 80-minute interview which will be released Thursday, he addressed controversial hotel planning concessions and fielded questions on local politics, his presence at Donald Trump’s inauguration ceremony last month, the Middle East, the Ukraine war, Malta’s neutrality and defence and his government’s scandals, among others.

Video: Karl Andrew Micallef

He also vowed to cut Comino tourist numbers by half from this summer and said he plans to scrap a measure that would have required Airbnb apartment owners to obtain approval from their condominium neighbours before operating.

Borg also fielded questions on his future in the Labour government and the driving licences racket.

Borg, who is also deputy prime minister, foreign minister and the Labour Party’s deputy leader, was handed the large tourism portfolio last November, taking over from former minister Clayton Bartolo who resigned following two scandals involving him and his wife.

The full podcast will be released on Times of Malta, YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts and on social media.

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