Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi yesterday declared Saturday, March 8 as the day when the country will go to the polls to elect the government for the next five-year legislature.

The announcement brought to a close weeks of anxious speculation over the election date and will have come as a relief to many.

The day will mark the fifth anniversary since the electorate gave the thumbs up to joining the EU. It will also be the day when 23 towns and villages hold the election for their local councils.

The Nationalist Party kicked off its electoral campaign officially in the evening with a rally at PN headquarters in Pieta'.

Opposition leader Alfred Sant welcomed the announcement, saying it would end the uncertainty. The Labour Party will hold a rally at its headquarters in ?amrun today and an extraordinary general conference on Thursday and Friday to present its candidates and electoral manifesto.

Yesterday morning, Dr Gonzi called a press conference at his office at Auberge de Castille in Valletta soon after calling on President Eddie Fenech Adami to ask him to dissolve Parliament and call the election.

Dr Fenech Adami signed the writ for the dissolution of Parliament which proclaims the election date, as well as the General Elections Act writ whereby the Electoral Commission is formally notified about the date.

Earlier, the Prime Minister presided over the last Cabinet meeting of this legislature. Dr Gonzi also called on the Speaker of the House, Anton Tabone, to inform him about the dissolution of Parliament, as well as meeting his parliamentary group.

Addressing the media outside the Palace in Valletta after meeting the President, Dr Gonzi said this was a moment of great importance for the country.

The Prime Minister, who will be leading his party through his first electoral campaign, then walked up Republic Street from the Palace and mingled with the people along the way. During the press conference at Castille, Dr Gonzi, who took over the leadership of the country in March 2004, listed Malta's achievements since then, saying the government had reached the 10 objectives it had set nearly four years ago.

Admitting that much more could have been done and apologising for what could have been done better, a confident-looking Prime Minister thanked the public for achieving the results together.

He was proud, he said, of what the country had managed to achieve and the "impressive" results on various fronts.

When he took office, he recalled, his government had set 10 priorities: Strengthening the country's finances, creating employment opportunities, attracting foreign investment, improving competiveness, improving coordination within the government, investing in education, improving the state of the roads and other capital projects, ensuring sustainable social services and making the best of EU membership.

His government based its work on three main pillars: employment, education and the environment.

Starting with employment, he said there are now around 4,400 more gainfully occupied than there were four years ago. The unemployment rate stood at 6,172 - "an excellent performance". Unemployment had reached the lowest levels in the last 12 years and was now below the average of EU member states.

He referred to the foreign investment that is pouring in, including the SmartCity project and the investment by Lufhansa Technik, which would create thousands of employment opportunities.

The Prime Minister said that in two successive budgets the government had reduced the tax burden in spite of the challenges of globalisation and the spiralling price of oil on the international market.

On education, Dr Gonzi indirectly criticised the Labour Party's reception class proposal saying children would have to repeat classes. The government had invested heavily in schools and in information technology. In fact the country had never invested so much in education as it has in the last four years.

Turning to the environment, Dr Gonzi said the closure of the Mag?tab rubbish dump was an important milestone and the man-made mountain of waste will soon be rehabilitated into a national park.

Thanks to the 34U campaign, over 50,000 trees were planted. The government also carried out 120 restoration projects and more still had to be done.

On the health sector, Dr Gonzi referred to the state-of-the-art Mater Dei Hospital and the pharmacy-of-your-choice scheme, which was facilitating the provision of medicines. New hospitals for cancer patients and for convalescence would be built in the near future.

Saying that his government was not perfect, Dr Gonzi insisted that what made him proud was that the government was returning to the electorate with a better country.

On the country's finances, the Prime Minister said that the deficit was brought down to just 1.6 per cent of the GDP from the 10 per cent it had stood at, and by 2010 the government would end the financial year with a surplus. He also said that all transfers and appointments which had not been completed were being suspended.

Replying to questions, Dr Gonzi said there would be need for new blood in the Cabinet following the election, adding that no one had a guaranteed place.

With regard to surveys which indicate that the MLP is ahead of the PN, Dr Gonzi said there was still a large portion of undecided voters and that the party's electoral campaign would target these people. He said he was confident the PN's policies would benefit the country more than those of the MLP and was equally confident citizens would make the best choice in the country's best interest.

Replying to questions on the controversy surrounding what Nationalist MP David Agius allegedly said about corruption, Dr Gonzi said the issue was being investigated by the police. Mr Agius has denied the allegation and will be filing a libel suit on the matter.

Dr Gonzi said his government always adopted a "zero tolerance" policy on corruption and has always been strict on this matter.