Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1538322
5 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 10 AUGUST 2025 INTERVIEW The following are excerpts from the interview. The full interview can be found on maltatoday.com.mt as well as our Facebook and Spotify pages. PHOTOS: JAMES BIANCHI / MALTA TODAY You criticised the government on three occasions recently: Manoel Island, recognising a Palestinian State, and the new planning reform. You've been a backbencher since 2022. Why are you criticising the government now? I speak quite a bit in parliament on drafts and motions that maybe others would not want to talk about on the government side. I defend the government's ideas but when there's criticism to be made, I will do so. In the three instances you mentioned, I spoke with constructive criticism. Criticism that doesn't just criticise but also offers solutions on what can be done better. That is my spirit, and I think it should also be the spirit of many MPs on our side, and even members of the government who stayed silent when they should have spoken. I believe the culture needs to change. If something is for the better, you should speak up because it is for the better. Speaking up doesn't mean you are against Robert Abela, or against the government. No, you speak up because you believe that together we can do something better. Why don't we see more Labour backbenchers criticising the government? The word 'criticism' in Maltese might be taken to mean that you are against something. But, as I have already said, this is criticism in a constructive sense. […] These discussions are important because if a recipe is made by just one person, instead of 10 or 20 people who should be contributing, the end result won't be good. And I appeal to my fellow backbenchers not to hesitate to criticise; to criticise the government's operations and to criticise positively. In 2022 you were left out of Cabinet. Before this there was a controversy over your chats with Yorgen Fenech and the "Laburist Gahan" quip. I never denied that I know Yorgen Fenech. Just as I know him, I think three- quarters of the people do too. There are members from the Opposition who knew him and have never admitted this. But it doesn't mean that because you know someone in a society of half a million people, you are doing something wrong. I know many, many more businesspeople than Yorgen Fenech. It doesn't mean you're doing anything bad just because you know people. What's important is that you don't compromise yourself. It's not about whether you know them, it's about managing conflicts of interest. And I can say that Yorgen Fenech never asked me for anything. Those chats were motivated by someone else telling me that [Fenech] was going through something. I wanted to see how he was doing. On the Gahan comment. If you are going to judge me, don't do it without context. I'm saying this because I was disappointed that in 2017 I had to contest a by-election, despite, in my opinion, having performed well as tourism minister. Just look at the numbers. As a person, I also managed to keep Air Malta going during some of the most difficult times […] Judge me by my track record in the Labour Party, where I have always been loyal. If you investigate properly, you will see that I have always put my neck on the line—in ways that others never have—and I was always there, even on the media, on various platforms. So judge me by my behaviour, not by a single comment taken out of context. I'm going to be clear. I think Robert Abela made a mistake by not including me in his Cabinet. I think I had a lot to contribute, and still have a lot to contribute. People tell me this, not just Labour supporters but people from across different spectrums, that the issues I raise are important to them. I think he made a mistake, and I believe he himself recognises that it was a mistake not to have me there. This was the first time he became prime minister through a legitimate vote, because before that he was of course serving on the basis of Joseph Muscat's mandate. I helped him, as he well knows. I carried out a record number of reforms, which I believe had never been done in our country within seven months. I did my best, and I would help again if needed. But I still think he made a mistake by not including me. That said, I understand it's his prerogative to choose his Cabinet. Perhaps he saw me as too young, perhaps now he is reconsidering some of the choices he made. But that is his prerogative, which I respect. I have nothing against him. In fact, I consistently send him suggestions to get more involved and to help further in the work ahead. I'd like to take you back to your nomination to the Gen- eral Court of the EU. Do you feel that maybe your nomi- nation was indecent in view of your position in Joseph Muscat's Cabinet? When there were rule of law problems and when Daphne Caruana Galizia was killed? I beg to differ. I'm proud that I formed part of Joseph Muscat's government. I think many criticise Joseph Muscat, and some of the criticism might be merited, but we have to admit that he moved the country forward. […] I disagree that Joseph Muscat created a problem for the rule of law. However, I agree that the assassination of Daphne Caruana Galizia is a stain on the government and on Malta. It is something that I believe will take years to address politically, socially, and in terms of our perception abroad. This was a huge stain. But that doesn't mean that the people who were with Joseph Muscat were not capable. To say that the people who were with Joseph Muscat—people who I honestly think were some of the most capable people for their jobs, even more capable than what we have today—should all be condemned, I don't think that's fair.