The Malta Tourism Authority’s model for organising events is “working well”, Tourism Minister Clayton Bartolo said on Monday, amid complaints from private sector producers that they cannot keep up with competing events organised by the state. The vice president of the Malta Entertainment Industry and Arts Association Toni Attard told Times of Malta on Sunday that the state, acting as a regulator as well as a producer of events, was having an impact on the entertainment market, with the private sector struggling to compete due to the state's ability to offer free events as well as the state’s increased spending power on marketing. Video: Matthew Mirabelli When asked whether the government planned to address these concerns, Bartolo said that the MTA’s plan was to work in tandem with the private sector to attract large-scale events to the island. “The aim of both the MTA and the government is to be an enabler, to have people from the private sector come forward and organise events like this one today,” he said, with reference to the Isle of MTV concert. “The government does not organise Isle of MTV but we are enabling this event to be organised.” “I think this model is working...