Coronavirus: Government can and should do more – PN

The Nationalist Party said that the government can and should do more to help businesses and workers who are hit by the spread of Coronavirus.

In a statement, the PN said the measures presented by the government on Tuesday were the third package, “which exposes a government that was being reactive and taking delayed action. The government has realised that the first two packages had not alleviated the level of uncertainty that exists.”

What was presented on Tuesday, the PN said, is a better attempt and includes measures that the Opposition had proposed. The government first attacks what the PN says and then takes it on board, the PN said.

“But the government can and should do more, also considering that thousands of workers and professionals in various sectors have not been affected by the measures announced on Tuesday.”

These measures hit 60,000 workers from the 164,000 employees in the private sector, the PN said, meaning that the government was making a distinction between workers. “It is a mistake for the government to ignore these sectors as it rendered them as second class when even they formed an integral part of the economy,” the PN said.

The PN believes that the government should reduce water and electricity bills at a time when people are spending more time at home and therefore consuming more. The price of oil on the international market is at its lowest level in years, the PN said