Alfred Sant
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The Honourable Alfred Sant KUOM MEP |
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|---|---|
| 11th Prime Minister of Malta | |
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In office 28 October 1996 – 6 September 1998 |
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| President | Ugo Mifsud Bonnici |
| Preceded by | Eddie Fenech Adami |
| Succeeded by | Eddie Fenech Adami |
| Member of the European Parliament | |
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Assumed office 1 July 2014 |
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| Personal details | |
| Born |
28 February 1948 Pietà, British Malta |
| Political party | Labour |
| Residence | Birkirkara, Malta |
| Website | alfredsant |
Alfred Sant (born 28 February 1948) is a Maltese politician and a novelist. He led the Labour Party from 1992 to 2008 and served as Prime Minister of Malta between 1996 and 1998 and as Leader of the Opposition from 1992 to 1996 and from 1998 to 2008.
Sant graduated from the University of Malta as Bachelor of Science in Physics and Mathematics in 1967 and as Master of Science in Physics in the following year. He studied public administration in 1970 at Institut International d'Administration Publique at the École Nationale d'Administration (ENA) in Paris and completed Master of Business Management (with honors) from Boston University Graduate School of Management (specialising in international business and business policy) and a Doctor of Business Administration from Harvard University.
Sant served as Second, and then First Secretary at the Malta Mission to the European Communities in Brussels between 1970 and 1975 when he resigned to undertake full-time studies in the USA. Between 1977 and 1978 on his return to Malta Sant served as advisor on general and financial management at the Ministry of Parastatal and People's Industries and between 1978 and 1980 he served as the Managing Director of Medina Consulting Group. Sant returned to the public sector in 1980 as Executive Deputy Chairman with the Malta Development Corporation.
Sant's first political post with the Labour Party was as chairman of its Department of Information (1982–92). During this time he also served as President of the Party (1984–88). He served a stint as the editor of the Party weekly Il-Ħelsien (1987–88). Sant first stood for election in 1987; although he was unsuccessful, he was co-opted to Parliament later that year. In 1992, following the resignation of Carmelo Bonnici, he was elected as Party leader.
The Labour Party (PL) won the October 1996 elections under Sant who successfully campaigned for the removal of the Value Added Tax (VAT) that had been introduced in 1995. A year after taking office the PL under Sant replaced VAT by a similar indirect tax, the Customs and Excise Tax (CET). Sant's tenure as Prime Minister lasted only 22 months. Enjoying only a one-seat majority the Government was vulnerable to threats from former Prime Minister and Labour leader Dom Mintoff. Things came to a head in the summer of 1998 when a row with Mintoff over a coastal concession to a private company resulted in Government being defeated the motion transferring the land. Sant felt that, in the circumstances, the government's parliamentary majority was compromised and asked the President to dissolve the House. In the subsequent elections held in September 1998 the Labour Party was defeated and returned into opposition.
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