“These schools are facing a very bleak potential future, with agents and students choosing to go somewhere else. This would impact tourism, education, and the quality of what Malta offers.” – “The scourge of the country is rubbish and littering. It’s a national scourge, not only in Floriana” – “We believe that it’s time to discuss the COLA mechanism, though we are not asking to change the COLA without a proper consultation with the other constituted bodies since legally, all stakeholders have to be involved.” – Chamber of SMEs president Paul Abela, 15 September
Alfred Sant
All through summer, The Malta Independent on Sunday carried an extensive interview, spanning 12 weeks, with Alfred Sant, at the end of his 10-year stint as an MEP. Sant was asked about his political career, starting off from his role as Labour Party president, and his years as Opposition Leader, Prime Minister and back to the Opposition benches before his time in Brussels. These are some quotes from the interview
There were occasions, and they were quite crucial, when (Karmenu) Mifsud Bonnici put his foot down, no matter what Mintoff opined, and his decision stuck… On other occasions, he would immediately align himself with what Mintoff wanted – (on Dom Mintoff’s influence on his successor, 30 June)
The problems with the import substitution and bulk buying strategies were not that they were mistaken as valid concepts but that they were hamfistedly announced and clumsily launched by politicians against the resistances that were surely bound to emerge – (on the Labour government’s policies in the 1980s, 7 July)
However a huge political cost to Labour was the resentment and, worse, that it had aroused within significant cohorts of Catholic school pupils and their families which they carried over into the next decades. Later they remained core supporters of the Fenech Adami and Gonzi administrations – (on the Church schools battle, 14 July)
The truth was that the PN government was spending the reserve funds accumulated under Mintoff’s austerity programmes and more to accommodate its feel good strategies – (on the first years of the PN government post-1987, 21 July)
It was made clear however there would be zero tolerance and support for any violence or threats or appearance of violence. That message was repeated a few times, run down the line and respected. – (on how Sant tackled the violent elements associated with the Labour Party after becoming leader, 28 July)
So the alternative tax that we wanted to introduce had to: replace VAT with an alternative protective tax on consumption that would eventually be dismantled to accommodate an industrial free trade zone with the EU; retain a consumption tax on services; be administratively less onerous on micro businesses than VAT was. – (on his idea to remove VAT once elected to power in 1996, 4 August)
Initially George Abela tried to bridge the arising problems but soon gave up. Dr Karmenu Mifsud Bonnici persisted to the very end. At a very late stage, he asked me whether I was prepared to meet Mintoff face to face, I said yes and at his request confirmed it in writing by fax. He never came back with a reply or follow up – (on his clash with Dom Mintoff before the 1998 election, 11 August)
I was not the only one to have not voted in the referendum; in later years during many house visits, I would meet people who would proudly show me their referendum voting document. – (on the EU referendum, 18 August)
True, Labour did say joining the euro was “hasty”. But we also agreed to drop our objections in order not to create political tension over what was going to become our national currency. – (on the currency changeover, 25 August)
As an MEP I did not consider myself as a European MP but as a Maltese member of the EP basically focussed on the national interest. For that reason, I never sought any EP appointment even when it was easily available (on his time as an MEP, 1 September)
Creating distractions from the need for MEPs to focus on where we are present… or seeking to downgrade Malta’s image where we are present is pathetic in my view and even in terms of generating kudos or political support in Malta, is just counter-productive (on how Maltese MEPs work, 8 September)
Some even feared I was a CIA agent sent to spy on what Labour was doing – (on his return to Malta following his studies in the US, 15 September)
Part 1 was published on 1 December
Part 2 was published on 8 December
Part 3 was published on 15 December
Part 4 was published on 22 December