Labour Party sets up Business Forum

The Labour Party has set up a Business Forum to help it draw up policies involving the business community.

The forum is headed by Marlene Mizzi, a businesswoman who also chaired Sea Malta and contested the last elections for the European Parliament.

She said that the aim of the forum was to remove the perception that the Labour Party was somehow more about blue collar workers than employers. The word workers, she said, embraced all those who worked, and all needed each other.

Party leader Joseph Muscat said that gone was the time when the Labour Party was antagonistic or unwelcoming to the business community. He said the forum would be a core group headed by Ms Mizzi which would be meeting the constituted bodies to discuss policies as well as current issues impacting on businesses. It would also organise larger events for the business community.

Ms Mizzi stressed that the Forum would not take over the role of the constituted bodies but would work with them on current issues.

Dr Gavin Gulia, party spokesman on the economy, said the PL had shown for years the importance it gave to small businesses. The 1996 Labour government also appointed a Parliamentary Secretary for Small Business. The following PN government did the same, but no one was directly responsible for this sector after the departure of Edwin Vassallo.