Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/822666
maltatoday, THURSDAY, 11 MAY 2017 5 News YANNICK PACE THE Labour Party has react- ed to housing proposals an- nounced yesterday morning by Nationalist Party leader Simon Busuttil, describing them as antiquated and lack- ing in vision. Speaking at a press con- ference at the Labour Party headquarters, social solidar- ity minister Michael Farru- gia insisted that Busuttil's proposals showed he was not aware of what was happening in the country. "Everything he said this morning was simply a copy of things that are currently be- ing implemented, or things that he himself has not real- ised have already been done," Farrugia said. He added that some months ago the government had spo- ken on a social housing pro- ject that would cost roughly €58 million. The project, he said, would include 600 apartments spread across 16 sites across Malta and Gozo and that work was already ongoing on two of the sites, with excavations on a third due to start in the coming days. "The project will take less than three years to complete and the funding will come from foreign social banks and will be implemented in col- laboration with the private sector," Farrugia said. He referred to Busuttil's proposal to subsidise rents, saying that Busuttil did not realise that "rent subsidies had already been doubled by the government this last year." Farrugia pointed out that a PN government in 2012 had increased subsidies by a maximum of €70. On rents, Farrugia said the government had also started a pilot projects offering tax cuts for those offering social housing at a reasonable rate for a period of seven years. "We were innovative in the way we looked forward. A few weeks ago, the ministry signed an agreement with a major bank for the bank to give a full loan to individu- als so they would not need to pay a 10% deposit upfront," he added. Farrugia explained that this had been introduced be- cause there was a consider- able number of people who could afford a loan because they were in employment, but could not afford to pay a deposit. He said the government was in advance negotiations with a second bank to set up a similar agreement, with talks with a third bank also lined up. Farrugia also took issue with Busuttil's apparent proposal to help first-time buyers. "He said he would extend the first-time buyers scheme for people who are divorced, separated and oth- ers," he said. "What he did not realise is that the Labour party, only a few days ago, announced help for second- time buyers, which includes these people as well as many others." Farrugia added that a per- son owning a home who wished to change it because it was now too big or small for their needs would be given the opportunity to do so. "For Simon Busuttil these people do not exist, for the Labour Party they do," he said. Lastly, Farrugia hit out at Busuttil's proposal to give back the increases in rents on social housing since 2013 – something Busuttil had called "an anti-social meas- ure" and "a tax on poverty. Farrugia insisted that the previous administration had increased rents from a few Euro to over €150. "Was this not a tax on pov- erty?" he said. "What he has not realised is that he wants to implement something that has already been implement- ed. Over the past week peo- ple were notified of the revi- sion announced in the last Budget and started to receive cheques in the mail." He added that not only were people being refunded but rents were also revised to their 2013 levels. PN commits to reversing rent increases STEFAN PAUL GALEA THE Nationalist Party said that it would reverse the in- crease in rent for social hous- ing and will pay back the increment that was already been paid. Addressing a press confer- ence in Floriana, PN leader Simon Busuttil said that in- creasing rent for people living in social housing amounted to taxing poverty. "The people looking to live in social housing has in- creased to 3,500. Due to the rise in rent, many middle class people are facing pover- ty. Joseph Muscat has raised the rent of those living on so- cial housing, who by defini- tion do so because of poverty. Increasing their rent meaning taxing poverty," Busuttil said. "I am not only committing to reverse this increase, but to pay back the difference that has been paid," he added. Busuttil added that a Na- tionalist government would reintroduce the scheme whereby the Housing Au- thority would rent accommo- dation from the private sector to offer it as subsidised social housing. Furthermore, the National- ist Party would increase the subsidy for those who rent accommodation from the pri- vate sector themselves, Bu- suttil said. "We will revise the subsidy scheme so more peo- ple can benefit from the gov- ernment subsidy, as well as increasing the subsidy itself." Busuttil also promised to remove the 5% tax on rental property to landlords who rent their property at a fixed rate for 10 years to those on the social housing waiting list. Pledging to pay back those whose land was expropriat- ed and were still waiting for compensation, Busuttil said the Nationalist government would use the profits made by the Lands Authority. "The compensation will not be valued by the marked at the time of expropriation, but by today's market," he said. While retaining the current administration's incentive for first-time buyers, that of ex- empting tax on first property up to the first €150,000, the Nationalist Party would ex- tend this measure to divorced or separated couples. "It is true that in the case of these people this would be their second property, but they are moving after separating from their spouse. Therefore, they should be considered first-time buyers," Busuttil said. He said that the costings will be published soon, al- though these could not be precise as these were related to the number of people who would make use of this meas- ure. Busuttil added that the el- derly people are at risk of be- ing homeless due to legal im- plications, and that if elected, a nationalist government would be commuted to study the legal situation and then come up with solutions. Labour insists PN proposals on rent already implemented Deborah Schembri and Michael Farrugia at yesterday's press conference Simon Busuttil in Floriana yesterday