Minister elusive on take-up of €25,000 grant offer to motorists
The scheme was launched in January and encourages young motorists to give up their licence
Transport Minister Chris Bonett on Monday put off answering a question on how many young motorists have applied to hand in their driving licence in return for a government grant, saying he will reply "at another sitting."
The question was asked by MP Bernice Bonello. The Nationalist MP had also asked a similar question in February, a month after the scheme was launched. At the time the minister replied that the number of applications amounted to more than 50% of the funds allocated to the scheme, but he gave no details.
In terms of the scheme, licensed drivers aged between 18 and 30 may apply to give up their licence for five years, in exchange for a €5,000 grant every year for those five years.
Details on the Transport Malta website showed that the scheme has a total budget of €5 million for every year, which means funding for up to 1,000 applicants. Applications remain open till the end of June.
Last month, when questioned by Times of Malta, the minister insisted that the figures would be revealed "when the time is right".
“There is interest. A number of applications are currently being vetted and, when we know the results, we will announce everything,” he told journalists.