Does the Government care, obviously not?
Published on http://www.gozonews.com/ by James A. Tyrrell.
The news that the Maltese Government predicted a deficit of €68 million for 2008 but that by the time the budget was announced in November the deficit had reached €200 million seems to have escaped widespread comment. Even more worryingly, in the first quarter of this year, the government deficit has soared to €256 million, almost equal to the €266 million deficit in the whole of last year.
In such a situation, it is inevitable that decisions on the funding of projects are bound to be affected, however one hopes that the tourist industry, the most important contributor to the economy, will be given all the support it needs, especially in the light of the falling numbers reported at the airport and in hotels and retail outlets.
Given this dire financial situation one would think that the Government would be doing everything it could to enhance the prospects of the tourist industry, but instead they choose to turn a blind eye. Take the current situation at Hondoq where half the quay has collapsed into the sea. Not only is this an eyesore to prospective tourists, but also a great safety issue as children do not see this sort of thing as dangerous but as an adventure. Yet the Government so far have did nothing other than make the area more dangerous by setting blocks around it.
If we move around the coast to Dwejra we find the ill conceived rusted concrete structure that still graces the top of the hill leading down to the Inland Sea. How does this look to tourists? How will it look to the judges in the New 7 Wonders contest if the Azure Window gets to that stage? Does the Government care, obviously not?
What they do seem to care about however is spending €80 million on a new Parliament House. Given the present economic climate and this rather large deficit I would have thought that the last thing on the Government's mind would be splashing out €80 million on a new Parliament building. Wouldn't it be more feasible, given that the capital is littered with old abandoned buildings, to utilise one of these as the new Parliament House?
This would have the effect of regenerating an otherwise unused building at a greatly reduced cost to building a new one. The funds left over from the €80 million might then go towards the construction of a performing arts centre at the site of the old Opera House which would at least generate fresh income by attracting cultural tourists to Malta, something a new Parliament building would never do.
The news that the Maltese Government predicted a deficit of €68 million for 2008 but that by the time the budget was announced in November the deficit had reached €200 million seems to have escaped widespread comment. Even more worryingly, in the first quarter of this year, the government deficit has soared to €256 million, almost equal to the €266 million deficit in the whole of last year.
In such a situation, it is inevitable that decisions on the funding of projects are bound to be affected, however one hopes that the tourist industry, the most important contributor to the economy, will be given all the support it needs, especially in the light of the falling numbers reported at the airport and in hotels and retail outlets.
Given this dire financial situation one would think that the Government would be doing everything it could to enhance the prospects of the tourist industry, but instead they choose to turn a blind eye. Take the current situation at Hondoq where half the quay has collapsed into the sea. Not only is this an eyesore to prospective tourists, but also a great safety issue as children do not see this sort of thing as dangerous but as an adventure. Yet the Government so far have did nothing other than make the area more dangerous by setting blocks around it.
If we move around the coast to Dwejra we find the ill conceived rusted concrete structure that still graces the top of the hill leading down to the Inland Sea. How does this look to tourists? How will it look to the judges in the New 7 Wonders contest if the Azure Window gets to that stage? Does the Government care, obviously not?
What they do seem to care about however is spending €80 million on a new Parliament House. Given the present economic climate and this rather large deficit I would have thought that the last thing on the Government's mind would be splashing out €80 million on a new Parliament building. Wouldn't it be more feasible, given that the capital is littered with old abandoned buildings, to utilise one of these as the new Parliament House?
This would have the effect of regenerating an otherwise unused building at a greatly reduced cost to building a new one. The funds left over from the €80 million might then go towards the construction of a performing arts centre at the site of the old Opera House which would at least generate fresh income by attracting cultural tourists to Malta, something a new Parliament building would never do.
posted by Hondoq at
1:22 PM
