The MHRA has said that this morning it received numerous reports from members asserting that staff reported late to work due to extraordinary traffic jams. Some, especially those travelling from the north of the Malta, reported commuting time of 2 hours and over.
The MHRA stressed that such incidents costs the industry money – “but worse still – it costs the country its reputation and image as problems related to accessibility caused by heavy traffic lead to various challenges in servicing tourists visiting our country.”
“Such incidents seriously undermine the country’s progress and create unwarranted frustration rather than the much needed confidence for the long term future strategy. The MHRA is not ready to take the armchair critic’s position; we are in fact willing and offering to sit with all concerned to come up with effective solutions. It is now time that the Government takes some tough decisions on this front,” MHRA President Tony Zahra said.
The MHRA, has also said that it is pleased to note that the success being recorded by the tourism sector has yet again been confirmed by the statistics for August as recorded by NSO and published earlier today.
“As per MHRA’s forecast, this summer will be another record season for the tourism sector, and the forthcoming winter season also looks very promising. As asserted in MHRA’s pre budget document it is now time for all stakeholders to look ahead and set a realistic vision and strategy for sustainable tourism.”
“This will require tough decisions to be taken by Government in particular in refining the way it manages its operations and implementing policies. MHRA asserts that success brings achieved in the tourism sector cannot be taken for granted and to maintain it there is no room for mistakes or poor service for whatever the reason maybe, “Mr Zahra concluded.