On wind farms Every day, I get to deal with people who are convinced about a target but find closed doors. Half of the ugliness of Malta is due to this fact – because people get convinced of the wrong ideas. So let us not convince people of the wrong ideas – let us not convince them about wind farms. I don’t want to see them in our countryside. MediaToday Business Breakfast, November 2008
On not paying utility bills By consumer law, I have every right to refuse paying for a product or service that does not meet its required standards for which it is priced… We will show [Austin Gatt] whether or not our members will comply. We are in discussion with our lawyers on this, and we can confirm that GRTU accepts Austin Gatt’s challenge. We will take it up MaltaToday, November 2008
On Lawrence Gonzi’s government There is one big problem with this government: it is dominated by yesterday’s men. There are too many faces in government that inspire little or nothing to the new generation of entrepreneurs and hard working middle class families. Eddie Fenech Adami, in spite of his age, had a vision – a vision that inspired those around him and brought him great following. MaltaToday, May 2005
On Lawrence Gonzi Lawrence Gonzi is in my view, the best choice we have at the moment. He has the right personality, he is honest and he is capable and unpretentious. He inspires confidence in many people. But he looks and sounds sad. It’s the picture of a person without a vision. Many around him are equally sad and give the same impression. Some are even angry, as if they hate the world around them. Some others are simply laid back: as if they are awaiting for something to happen. MaltaToday, May 2005
On constesting with the PN Business and SMEs need a strong voice not only in Malta but also in Europe. It is important for one of Malta’s MEPs to be able to play a leading role in defending SMEs and to be well versed in economic policy and in how the EU can help small economies. The Times Business, March 2009
On his future in the GRTU As a full-time employee of the GRTU - and the GRTU is an exemplary employer - we abide by the right of every European citizen to contest such elections and not to lose his job. At the end of the campaign, if I am not elected, it will be illegal not to allow me to return to my post. The Times Business, March 2009
On his opposition to VAT in 1996
Strangely enough, the person who wrote a thick paper as a consultant to GRTU, saying that VAT should be introduced at 15%, was called Vince Farrugia. When I joined the GRTU, I realised that the majority of businessmen, most of whom were staunch Nationalists, were dead against it. I had to go back to the government and suggest they don’t adopt the paper. The government didn’t want to change it because of Brussels. All of us made a mistake then, considering the financial consequences. The Times, March 2009
On his opposition to the PN in the 1990s You look at it from a politically narrow point of view, of a party which wants to be in power forever, it is justified. If you look at it (from the point of view) that a political party can be in power one day and out the next; that it’s good to look at the world from the opposition, even if you’re a Nationalist, you will say it was a blessing in disguise. I don’t say I planned that blessing in disguise. The Times, March 2009
On how Nationalists look at him The Nationalists’ image of me is not 1996, as some people like to say. Their image of me is the pre-EU referendum period. Look at the speeches of Eddie Fenech Adami - he used to mention me by name. I’m not saying I was instrumental for the ‘yes’ vote to win, but I was one of the more important influences. The people had to stand up and be counted not in 1996, but in the pre-referendum period. The Times, March 2009
On being invited to contest with Labour I met Dr Muscat four times. He has an excellent way of talking to people. On all four occasions, he was probing whether I wanted to bite. If I said yes, I would have gone through the formality. I never said yes, but the invitations were clear - they were overheard by others. I had people with me. I keep saying it’s the truth. Every Labour Party supporter who meets me keeps asking me why I didn’t join them and if Joseph asked me to do so. I am doing him a favour saying that he did. The Times, March 2009
Any comments?
If you wish your comments to be published in our Letters pages please click button below. Please write a contact number and a postal address where you may be contacted.
Download front page in pdf file format
All the interviews from Reporter on MaltaToday's YouTube channel.
MediaToday Business Breakfast, November 2008
