Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1524591
maltatoday | SUNDAY • 28 JULY 2024 4 INTERVIEW Glenn Bedingfield: 'Now is not the time to build walls' GLENN Bedingfield was appointed for the first time to an executive po- sition last January when he was made parliamentary secretary for public cleansing. It has been a "learning curve" over the past seven months, he tells me as we sit down for this interview at his open-plan office in Mrieħel. The relatively short period he has been part of Cabinet belies Beding- field's permanence in the Labour Party. "I have militated under every leader since Karmenu Mifsud Bon- nici," he tells me with a chuckle. Bedingfield's deep roots in the party give him an insight into the thinking of those who form part of the party's grassroots and who have been up in arms since the June election mishap. He acknowledges that some in the grassroots are voicing displeas- ure with the Muscatian idea of a movement, which in their eyes has robbed the party of its soul. Non-traditional Labour voters have suddenly become opportunists. "I understand and appreciate this sentiment. Many of those who speak in this way do so because they would have passed through personal experiences. We have to address these personal experiences but I speak a lot with these people and even they understand the need for the party to grow," he says. But Bedingfield cautions against a siege mentality that risks taking over the PL. "Now is not the time to put up walls," he says, adding that historically the party won elec- tions when it acted as a movement. Bedingfield says it is the gov- ernments duty to take the neces- sary decisions to improve people's quality of life. This is the message he believes people delivered in the June European Parliament election. But it is not just the government that should act. Bedingfield says the PL must step up its auto criti- cism and prod the government. However, he insists, change should not be cosmetic or about individuals. He says the party has to determine how it wants to shape the country for the next 20 to 25 years. As for his government portfolio, Bedingfield feels the "ignorant ac- tions" of the few who persist in il- legal dumping of waste should not tarnish everyone else's reputation. He says a new plan for enhanced cooperation and surveillance is be- ing drawn up but insists keeping Malta clean is a collective effort. Glenn Bedingfield is a relative newcomer to the country's executive but a veteran hand in the Labour Party. He speaks to Kurt Sansone about his Cabinet portfolio and offers some ref lections on how the PL should react to the June election results