The country's physical infrastructure was completely overhauled, with many roads reconstructed, a new airport, reverse osmosis plants and power station built, as well as the removal of import licenses and quotas. Telecommunications, financial services and the banking sectors were deregulated or privatised. By the early nineties, Fenech Adami started to direct his economic and governmental policies to integrate Malta into the European Economic Community. This included the gradual removal of local import and customs duties. As prime minister he asked for a number of presidential pardons including one for Joseph Fenech, who was a well known criminal. The pardon was proffered on the basis of Joseph Fenech acting as a star witness in a trial for the attempted murder of Richard Cachia Caruana, then personal assistant to prime minister Fenech Adami.