News | Sunday, 28 February 2010

PRINT THIS ARTICLE

Labour comments on Eurostat survey results on energy rates

The Labour Party yesterday accused Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi of “burdening the Maltese with the highest increases in utility bills throughout the EU.”
The PL spokesperson was referring to a Eurostat survey on pricing which showed that between December 2009 and January 2010, at 29% increase, Malta suffered the biggest blow in price hikes related to electricity, gas and other fuels excluding petrol and diesel.
Lithuania featured second at 10%.
PL pointed out that the average increase on utilities within the EU was just above 1% during the period in review.
Furthermore, Italy, Luxembourg, The Netherlands, Slovakia, the Czech Republic and Latvia registered a reduction in rates charged to consumers throughout the same period.
Comparing January of this year to the same month in 2009, the PL spokesperson said that Malta still featured as the EU country with the most severe hikes in energy rates, at an 18% increase.
”And this when seeing that 14 EU member states lowered their rates throughout this period up to a 17% reduction,” the PL said. ”The electricity tariffs introduced by Lawrence Gonzi’s government in January 2010 were 10% higher than those established in 2008 – when the price of oil was at its highest, selling at US$100 per barrel.”
Labour said that this price-comparison to other EU countries clearly shows that the price increases of January were exaggerated “in spite of the fact that prior to the increase in rates, Malta already featured as the ninth most expensive for domestic rates and the most expensive for businesses throughout the EU.”
The PL therefore contends that this confirms Finance Minister Tonio Fenech’s claims that tariffs have had to go up to avoid raising the National deficit.
“The price hikes were not introduced to make up for the international prices of oil, but to cover up for government’s incompetence, mismanagement and corruption.”

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.

EDITORIAL

Offhand reaction to prison death

The flippancy of the Justice and Home Affairs Ministry in its reaction to MaltaToday’s front-page revelation last Wednesday, of the suicide of a British inmate at Corradino Correctional Facility has betrayed the prevalent attitude of government towards the media, and its disregard for the serious conditions inside Division 6..>>

---

INTERVIEW


Reform now, or never
Nationalist backbencher and family doctor STEPHEN SPITERI hedges his bets on the upcoming primary health reform as the only way the public health system can rid itself of its current problems.>>