Travel restrictions being imposed by many countries to travellers coming to Malta are the result of misguided and erroneous decisions taken by the government, the Malta Employers Association said.
In particular, the UK restrictions on travellers to Malta now rule out an early tourism recovery.
The association said it is "tragic" to report the development after so much sacrifices made by companies, employees, hospital staff and vulnerable persons.
The government also introduced a well-designed stimulus package to keep the economy running through the summer months.
But the government opted for selective consultation with lobbyists, resulting in a misguided repositioning of Malta’s tourism product, the MEA said.
Families will lose their livelihood because of the capricious lobbying of a few operators who stood to gain from turning Malta into a party island
"The result is that hotels are reporting massive cancellations and the catering industry faces bleak prospects once the voucher spree subsides. Government will now have to pump more millions to keep the economy running. Many companies are losing business, and families their livelihood because of the capricious lobbying of a few operators who stood to gain from turning Malta into a party island."
Yes to airport reopening, but no to mass events
The association said it was in favour of reopening the airport and to target tourists, who would have posed minimum risk of contagion, concurrent with strict control of mass events held locally. If such a strategy had been adopted, there is a high probability that the current situation would have been avoided, and Malta would still be welcoming tourists from safe destinations in a controlled environment.
"Although this would not have been a guarantee that the number of COVID-19 cases would not have increased, the government would not have been held to account and the chances of a fast economic recovery would have been higher. It was also generally acknowledged that tourist arrivals were expected to be low compared to previous years, but now the outcome of this scenario will be much worse than the alternatives."
As things stand, affected companies will be expecting an extension of the fiscal measures to keep them running and to prevent massive layoffs in the coming months, which will cost government and taxpayers millions.