Government ‘wants to fine MPs for no Parliament but then wants to hold vot

With Parliament moving to the end of the current session, it is now discussing changes in its Standing Orders but Leader of the Opposition Simon Busuttil found inconsistencies in it.

Speaking in an interview on Radio 101 he said that while the government wants (the Opposition agrees with this) MPs to be fined for not attending Parliament, it then wants to hold any votes on one pre-set day, on Wednesdays.

This means that ministers will be able to fly here and there as long as they can be present on Wednesdays for the vote.

And the Prime Minister can continue to travel around the world on private jet as long as he is back on Wednesdays. The Prime Minister’s travels have already cost the country €1.2 million.

Holding votes on pre-set days could be accepted when the government had a slender majority but not when like at present the government has such a large majority.

The Opposition is also suggesting that Malta’s Parliament introduces Prime Minister’s Question Time as is done in the House of Commons on a Wednesday but the prime minister is having none of that, as Dr Muscat Busuttil.

It would seem the Prime Minister is afraid of standing up to be questioned.

He has also been fighting shy of being confronted by Dr Busuttil on Xarabank for two whole years.

At the beginning of the interview, Dr Busuttil was invited to speak about the terrorist attacks this past week. These are difficult times and we must not think himself told Dr we are not affected by what is happening. The peoples of Europe, and we too, ask themselves: Are we safe? There is a European response but there must also be a national response. The latest attacks have been carried out by just one person.

People he meets tell him (Dr Busuttil) they are worried. They also ask: Are we safe? Malta will soon have a higher international profile as the President of the EU. His appeal to the government is thus to take security seriously.

There are doubts in this regard: as exemplified by the giving out of so many visas that an officer handling them had to be brought back.

The country is still without a Commissioner of Police.

The reaction of Turkey’s president at the attempted coup was certainly an over-reaction,