The government's decision to publish its proposals for judicial reform without consulting the Opposition was not a sign of a Malta that wanted to change, Nationalist Party leader Adrian Delia has said.
The Leader of the Opposition insisted that the PN should have been consulted before the government sent its proposals to strengthen rule of law to the Council of Europe's Venice Commission.
Delia was speaking during an interview with The Malta Independent that was broadcast on Nationalist Party media on Saturday afternoon.
“If the government is trying to project to the Venice Commission and its citizens that it should not have so much control over institutions and is committed to upholding democracy and strengthening the rule of law, this attitude does not give the impression of a Malta that is committed to change,” Delia said.
He said he had met with the president on the matter and made it clear that the Opposition would be producing a document with their own proposals in the coming days.
“The government should have the humility and good sense to realise that this is not a partisan matter but a necessary exercise to strengthen our democracy and the rights of our citizens and that if we can work together on these proposals we would be taking the first steps in the right direction.”
Malta sent its proposals to the Venice Commission earlier this week.
Shops and travel
Asked whether he agreed with proposals put forward by the Chamber of SMEs to ease the burden on business owners and stimulate economic activity, Delia said the PN was currently discussing the proposals with the Chamber.
Regarding the proposal of ‘safe travel corridors’, the Opposition Leader said he would continue to follow recommendations from the Superintendence of Public Health and that people’s health would always come first, before economic activity.
Tourism Minister Julia Farrugia Portelli on Friday said that Malta and nine other countries were exploring the possibility of creating a 'safe travel corridor', although she provided no further details.
He expressed concern that the government seemed intent to follow through on decisions that had been taken before the number of new COVID-19 infections began to rise again.
“It is useless to try and strengthen the balance sheets when people do not feel that their health is being safeguarded,” Delia said.
“The government does not have a post-COVID recovery strategy. People are receiving aid only after they’ve fallen, but our strategy is to anticipate and avoid these situations and help our businesses adapt and survive.”
PN defections
Delia was also quizzed on what the party was doing to strengthen its unity and curb the number of defectors who had shifted allegiances to the Labour Party, such as former Lija mayor Ian Castaldi Paris, who won a seat in parliament on the government’s benches just this week.
“We know we were in the wrong, that we had deficiencies and because of that people chose to part ways with us and we respect those decisions,” Delia said.
“But we have gone through a transparent process of fixing these issues and get back to the ‘can-do’ attitude that the party was known for many years.”
“We aspire to help people to work and serve and not to say ‘no’ but ‘let’s see how we can do it’. We are creating a space for more people to work and get involved and feel like they are changing politics.”
Migration
Asked whether he would be taking the same decisions as the government’s current stance on migration, Delia said that while the civil unrest and climate change would always make migration a persistent issue, he said he would not be in a situation were Malta’s reputation with the EU was so poor it was not in a position to demand successful repatriations.
“I agree that Malta’s capacity has reached its limit. I’m not going to tell you there is a next day solution to this problem because there isn't one. But it should be clear that those who do not have a right to asylum should be repatriated and people engaged in human trafficking should be dealt with accordingly," he said.