[WATCH] MTA chairman to run as Labour candidate, sees no conflict with position

Malta Tourism Authority chairperson Gavin Gulia has confirmed that he will stand as a Labour candidate in the upcoming general election.

However, when asked by MaltaToday during a press conference at the PL headquarters, he insisted that this does not place him in conflict with his role as chairperson of the MTA, a regulatory authority.

“The law forbids MPs from occupying the role of MTA chairperson, but it doesn’t preclude candidates from occupying that position,” he said. “My record as MTA chairperson isn’t negative, and a better question would have been to ask me about my work as MTA chairman. Under my tenure, tourism in Malta has reached record levels.”

When asked whether he considered it appropriate behaviour for the chairperson of a regulatory authority to address a partisan event, he said he had already given an answer.  

When asked whether he should resign as MTA chairman, Labour MP Silvio Schembri – who was also addressing the press conference – stepped in to praise his colleague’s track record at the MTA. “His track record speaks for itself. There’s been no issue or controversy over whether he has taken decisions to favour certain people.”

Gulia then argued that he is a non executive chairman, and that he had faced criticism four years ago when he, as a failed PL candidate in the 2013 election, had been appointed MTA chairman, “Through my actions as MTA chairman, I have already responded to that criticism.”

The duo were addressing a press conference at Mile End to toast the Labour government’s economic achievements. Gulia noted that the economy grew by 5% in 2016, a percentage point higher than what the European Commission, IMF and credit rating agencies had forecasted.

193,000 people were employed as of December 2016, an increase of 11% when compared with 2012. Meanwhile, the jobs growth rate increased by 2% in the final quarter of 2016, by far the highest rate in Europe.

Schembri said that workers’ salaries in total increased by €250 million and businesses profited increased by €300 million last year when compared with 2015.

He added that the government will soon announce details on how the minimum wage will increase, as social partners have come close to reaching an agreement. He reiterated Joseph Muscat’s pledge the government will be ready to regulate the rental market if a scheme to double the subsidies of low-income earners in private properties backfires and inflates the market further.