[WATCH] Muscat promises ‘fairer’ fines for hunters and trappers

Muscat promises ‘fairer’ fines for hunters and trappers

The Courts seem to impose the maximum sentences in all cases involving hunters and trappers, and it was therefore time to revise the schedule of fines relative to minor infringements to make the sentencing more realistic, Prime Minister Joseph Muscat said tonight.

“I myself have never felt any attraction to hunting and trapping but I firm believer that the majority should not try to impose its will on the minority,” he said. “Don’t get me wrong, illegal hunting and trapping should be punished severely, but I believe that most hunters and trappers have behaved impeccably in the past few years.”

Muscat was speaking in Gharghur at a public interview hosted by DJ Ozzy Lino, during which he appeared very much at ease and relaxed. Not so Ozzy, who appeared visibly excited to be hosting the event – despite his 160 million YouTube views – leading Muscat to even tease him about it.

He said that Nationalist Party leader Simon Busuttil and Democratic Party leader Marlene Farrugia were the country’s most unstable partners and had no idea how to lead the country,

“The only thing they have in common is their hatred and their unpreparedness to lead this country, as they have already demonstrated in countless economic shortcomings that have been uncovered in proposals put forward by the two,” he said.

Muscat said that the Labour Party wanted everyone to see that Malta’s best days are yet to come and that people should be looking forward to better health and education services, less taxes and more quality time to spend with the family.

The informal interview in Gharghur was hosted by DJ Ozzy. Photo: James Bianchi/MediaToday

He said he had never let the fact that Malta was so small stop him from thinking big and from believing the country could achieve anything it set its mind to.

“We managed to reach record levels of employment while at the same time introducing a number of measures that have helped incentivise women to join the workforce, including free childcare,” Muscat said. “I believe having people find gainful employment gives them the dignity they might feel they lack when unemployed.”

He said he was immensely proud that around 1,000 disabled persons had found a job under this administration.

“I agree with opposition leader Simon Busuttil who today suggested that disabled persons who cannot work be granted a benefit equal to the minimum wage,” he said. “So much so, that we have already implemented this exact same measure in the last budget.”

With regards to Busuttil’s commitment to create 30,000 new jobs, Muscat said that the Labour government had managed to create 35,000 jobs in four years.