Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1547461
JULIANA ZAMMIT jzammit@mediatoday.com.mt 3 maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 4 NOVEMBER 2026 NEWS Photo: Daniel Tihn Comino visitor fee to help pay for Blue Lagoon works, Abela say THE second phase of beautifi- cation works at the Blue Lagoon will start soon, helped by the fee tourists pay to visit Comino, Prime Minister Robert Abela has announced. "The increase in the eco-contri- bution will be invested in servic- es, and we will give more power to local councils in tourist areas to use the funds," Abela said in Parliament on Tuesday evening. The fee tourists pay to vis- it Comino, he said, "will help finance the investment in the beautification we are doing at the Blue Lagoon, where we will soon launch the second phase of works". Abela spoke during the reply to the Budget 2027, which Finance Minister Clyde Caruana pre- sented last week. He was reply- ing to Opposition Leader Alex Borg, who delivered the Opposi- tion's replica speech on Monday evening. Abela described the budget as "the only progressive budget in the European Union". He then mentioned a €100 million in- crease in social benefits, exclud- ing pensions, and €100 million of investment in the digital sector. Abela said money collected from cruise liner tourists would help set up a new foundation for Valletta. The foundation will bring together the local council and a number of other entities, so that work to maintain and protect the capital is better coor- dinated. He also announced that the Għawdex ferry service will be free from 1 January for all Mal- tese and Għawdxin passengers who cross with a pass. "In this way we will have ful- filled another important pledge of the electoral manifesto," he said. The measure also extends to European Union citizens res- ident in Malta and to people with long-term status. On Monday, Borg said the Op- position accepts a fair tourism contribution but would apply the €8 a night hotel tax and €10 short-let tax only from May to October. He also said he wanted the higher ferry fares reconsid- ered. Abela said the budget allocates a record €141 million to Għaw- dex, almost two and a half times what the Opposition invested when in government. The fast ferry, launched in 2020, now runs longer hours. The process for a fourth ves- sel is nearing its close and is in its final adjudication stage. A prequalification questionnaire (PQQ) will be launched by the last quarter of this year so that the ferry operator can build new vessels that it will own. On tourism, Abela said Delta Airlines began flying from New York this summer, and talks are closing to continue the route next year. Qatar Airways will resume flights to Malta from March, giving access to its global network. He said the government had al- so managed to turn its attention to attracting tourists from other quality countries after the United States. Abela said the government would keep the energy subsidies, which cost €392 million this year, with another €400 million set aside for next year, about €800 million over two years. "The sub- sidies, as many as there were, are still there, and for as long as we keep governing they will stay," he said. On the grid, Abela said a second interconnector between Malta and Ragusa will start working in the first quarter of next year. He also said 15 new distribution centres will be built. Abela said the super bonus is €1,000 a year, not taxable. He said he was pleased to see Borg agree with it, though Borg still said he would vote against. On Manoel Island, the prime minister said the government had decided "in favour of the people" and brought it back. An extensive clean-up has started to improve access and let the public enjoy the park in a cleaner, safer setting, including the coast. He said the government will change planning laws so that parks it has designated, such as White Rocks and Manoel Island, cannot be undesignated. Abela also announced that Lufthansa Technik will open its fourth hangar in Malta, which will let it work on almost every type of commercial aircraft. Abela said public debt stood at 47% of the economy, among the lowest in the European Union. He said growth is projected at 4% a year and the deficit stayed un- der 3%. Capital spending, at €1.5 billion, was the largest in Malta's history, he said. Abela said the manifesto's goal is to improve people's quality of life by 25% over five years. He said the government would study how the budget measures feed into the Well-being Index with Minister Omar Farrugia. On workers from outside Eu- rope, Abela said the debate must be held "with maturity and re- sponsibility, without any dispar- aging words". He said the government's la- bour migration policy aims to cut worker turnover and keep work- ers longer. The gap between the fee for a new work permit and for a renewal has been kept, in line with that aim. He repeated the claim at the end of his speech, saying the government had made "the only progressive budget in Europe". He listed the super bonus, high- er pensions, lower company tax and free therapy for children with a disability, and urged peo- ple to leave the worries about the international storm to the gov- ernment. "I give you my word that everything we promised we will carry out, all of it, whatever hap- pens and whatever happens be- yond our shores," Abela said.