[WATCH] Coronavirus: Delia urges government to assist businesses immediately

The government has to immediately put in place measures to help Malta’s businesses deal with the impact of the coronavirus, or else companies will fail and jobs will be lost, Adrian Delia has warned.

The Nationalist Party leader said that an aid framework for businesses was urgently needed and had to be implemented now.

Delia said that while Economy Minister Silvio Schembri said yesterday that the government was working on drawing up assistance packages for companies, this was taking to long to be put into effect. In the meantime, some businesses were already failing or laying off working, he said.

“The government has to immediately explain how it is going to help businesses. If this does not happen no, it will be too late for many self-employed persons and SMEs,” Delia, who was addressing a press conference on Friday, said.

The PN leader also lamented that the government was being scant with the information about the virus which it was providing the public. He said that on Thursday he had met with Health Minister Chris Fearne, who had briefed him on the current situation. Such information related to the virus and what the plan to limit the damage it will cause consists in should be provided to the people, he emphasised.

“If we look at what it happening in other countries… the information being given [by their governments] helps in preventing panic and allows businesses to better prepare themselves,” he highlighted.

Delia appealed to employers and employees to do all they could to reduce transmission in the workplace, including by opting for remote working. “We have the technology - let’s use it,” he said.

He said the PN would be appealing to the European People’s Party in the European Parliament to press the EU to offer particular help to small companies.

“These [small businesses] are the motor of the European economy. If we want the economy to start functioning again after [the pandemic passes], we can to ensure we don’t lose such businesses,” he said.

Delia also reiterated his appeal to elderly and vulnerable people to avoiding leaving their homes as much as possible.