[WATCH] Government insensitive to 11,000 people who lost their job due to COVID-19, Opposition leader says

Nationalist Party leader Adrian Delia has called out government over its insensitivity towards 11,000 unemployed people who have no job to return to.

Speaking in an interview on part station NET TV, the opposition leader said government is not being truthful and transparent when speaking of the country’s unemployment.

“Where was government help for these people?” Delia said, urging for a way forward on the loss of employment.

He said the PN has launched a discussion with stakeholders including employers and investors, to lay out the direction the country will be pursuing following the “new reality” brought about by COVID-19.

“Let’s see how we can be innovative, while overcoming other countries’ competitive edge,” he said.

Delia also said the country’s small size means that it can be more agile than others when implementing change.

Adrian Delia also insisted the COVID-19 pandemic is still a public health emergency, after the PM said on Sunday that it was “all behind us”.

He also called out Abela’s statement, with the PN leader saying that the PM’s messages always contrast with those of health authorities.

“This was true at the beginning of the pandemic and during the transition period: on one side we had cautiousness and on the other bullishness, as if the more arrogant you are in dealing with the issue, the more successful you will be,” he said.

On the announcement made by Abela over the reopening of the airport, Delia said that while government will be reopening the country’s frontiers, no new economic sectors aimed at attracting tourists to island have been announced.

Speaking on the PM’s visit to Libya, Delia said the PN has not been briefed on what unfolded.

“We know absolutely nothing,” he said.

He said people expect the PM to shed details on what went on in the Libya delegation, and what to expect in the coming days as a result of the visit.

On Thursday, the PM, Home Affairs Minister Byron Camilleri and Foreign Minister Evarist Bartolo visited Libya in a delegation aimed at discussing the migrant situation.

The only information provided by government was on the setting up of units in Malta and Libya which would be coordinating operations against illegal migration.