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Social partners must get
together to find a solution
by Blanche Gatt
Malta should look to other countries for examples of how to
solve its economic problems, especially increased public expenditure,
according to the President of the Chamber of Commerce, Mr John
E. Sullivan.
In an interview with The Malta Business Weekly, Mr Sullivan
said that discarding employees in the public sector to cut down
on government spending is not a viable solution, but reducing
expenditure by increasing productivity is.
“The time has come for the three social partners to get
together to find a solution. This is what we would like to achieve
on the MCESD, to get together and come up with a modus vivendi.
It is not easy, but it has been done in Ireland, for example,
where since they took this step 10 years ago, their economy
has flourished incredibly. Our primary qualm with government’s
handling of the financial situation is its inability to responsibly
contain public expenditure. Government cannot be solely blamed
for this predicament as this is an issue which falls within
the remit of the MCESD, but it must also be emphasised that
apart from containing the national debt, government’s prime
objective should also focus on encouraging a business-friendly
environment. After all, it is private enterprise not public
expenditure which leads the way to long-term sustainable prosperity.
“The objectives for the consolidation of public finances
as expressed in the Consolidated Accounts Structure publication
rest on clear GDP growth assumptions. The private sector must
be assisted in creating the level of national wealth required
not merely for the attainment of public finance targets, but
also for considerations of employment, investment, balance of
payments and standards of living.”
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