Updated | PN blasts government 'incompetence' in EU funds handling

The Nationalist Party has hit out at the government for its "gross incompetence" in its handling of €13 million in EU funds that were lost on the Coast Road and Cittadella restoration projects.

Addressing a press conference at the Coast Road, Nationalist MEP Roberta Metsola dismissed the government’s argument that the €11 million in EU funds lost on the Coast Road project will be redirected to other projects.

The European Court of Auditors in October recommended withholding 25% (€11 million) of the EU funds allocated to the Coast Road project because Transport Malta did not respect public procurement rules. 

Government had back then insisted that it had “not lost a single cent” of the €11 million, but had instead “redirected” it to other projects. Indeed, EU funds parliamentary secretary Ian Borg last month announced that the funds would instead be used to purchase technological equipment for public schools.

However, Metsola dismissed the government’s logic, arguing that the public has to make good for the €11 million in EU funds that were originally intended for the Coast Road project, irrespective of whether the funds will be used on other projects or not.

“Thanks to gross incompetence from government’s side, the taxpayer has to fork out €11 million, partially by paying high prices for fuel,” she said.

Opposition MP Chris Said similarly warned that the public will have to make good for around €2 million in EU funds that were originally allocated to the Cittadella restoration project. He argued that the funds were lost because the project fell behind schedule, meaning that it extended beyond the December deadline for the absorption of the funds.

He noted that Gozo minister Anton Refalo had, in response to a parliamentary question in November 2014, revealed that the project would cost €14.5 million, of which 85% (or €12.5 million) would come out of EU funds.

Back then, Refalo had also promised that the project would be completed by June 2015. 

“Seven months down the line and the works are still ongoing, a sign of gross incompetence from government’s side,” Said said.

Moreover, Refalo said in response to another PQ by Said last month that  €10.5 million in EU funds were spent on the Cittadella project by the end of 2015, amounting to 90.3% of the allocated funds.

“€2 million in EU funds were left unused and therefore lost, meaning that the taxpayer will have to fork it out,” he said. “To put it in perspective, this means that every Gozitan couple will have to fork out €120.”

He added that the architect in charge of the Cittadella project had recently said that the budget for the Cittadella project will exceed the original estimates “by around 30%”.

“How much is the public going to pay for this project?” he questioned. 

'Busuttil persisting in baseless lies' - PL 

In a brief response, the Labour Party accused PN leader Simon Busuttil of “persisting in lying” and of “organizing yet another negative press conference”.

“Busuttil is trying to convince people that EU funds were lost, when even the European Commission has confirmed that this is not the case,” the PL said, arguing that the funds for both the Coast Road and Cittadella projects had been available since 2007.

“It was a Labour government that completed the Coast Road project, and it will be the same government that will complete the Cittadella restoration works.”