Boat owners petition government for ‘immediate revision’ of Mgarr privatisation

The petition is to be formally presented to Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi and to all MPs in the coming days.

Prepared by the Gozo Boat Owners Association, the petition lists a series of flaws in the concession, claiming no consultation was held with the present boat owners, and accusing government of overlooking the social impact on Gozitans.

“During the 25-year concession period of the agreement, berth-holders will be left totally at the mercy of the operator,” the petition states, adding that government “seems to have forgotten that in Gozo there is only one marina which offers 145 annual berths and a handful of temporary berths of which more than half are occupied by Gozitan owned boats.”

The petition says the agreement has no regulatory provision, as the operator seems to have been given “a completely free hand to do whatever it wished” when it comes to fees and regulations: it transpires that the laws under which Mgarr marina fell as a ‘yachting centre’, were “drastically altered”.

The boat owners said that while the company would offer better service and European standards, the same operator’s scope was to maximize income rather than to provide a service to the present berth-holders.

“It is feared that, given the opportunity, the operator will prefer boats or superyachts owned by foreigners whose financial situation allows them to pay substantial berthing fees rather than the present fees paid by the existing berth-holders.”

They also expressed concern that should the operator wish, “it can increase berthing fees to a level that the local berth-holders could be squeezed out and replaced by visiting yachts from other countries that could afford to pay such increased fees.”

The owners also claim the marina was now a government-sanctioned monopoly run by a private operator – and worse – “the operator has been granted the best of both worlds, namely the role of regulator and operator.”

The boat owners said the government had completely disregarded the established principle of Gozo’s “double insularity”, accusing it of using the definition as a “tool of convenience” in particular circumstances.

They point out that present berth-holders and Gozitans should have been granted a set of rules applicable to them, as has been done in other situations where the local population has been protected.

Other local marinas whose operation involves private sector involvement grant preferential conditions to berth-holders, as in the case of Msida who berthed there before the transfer of the operation, or at Vittoriosa prior to the transfer to the Grand Harbour Marina, while preferential treatment will be granted to existent berth-holders in Kalkara.

“Mgarr Marina, being the only marina in Gozo, should allow preferential treatment to all existing authorized berth holders and Gozitans in general. The agreement fails to safeguard the interests of the present berth holders,” the petition says.