The government's Vision for 2015 will be revisited in the coming months to see if it should be adjusted to the current international scenario.

Closing the Nationalist Party's general council yesterday, Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi said the economic situation had changed since the plan to turn Malta into a centre of excellence in seven sectors was developed three years ago.

"Faced with this new scenario, I invite the party to sit down and hold discussions to see where we want to go, where we want to take the country," he told the party's councillors.

He expressed certainty that the PN would give birth to new ideas through discussion.

Vision 2015 aims to strengthen the island's financial services, information and communication technology, tourism, manufacturing, health and education sectors as well as turn Gozo into an ecological island.

Dr Gonzi said other changes also needed to be put on the agenda of discussion, including those revolving around an inclusive society, the role of women and the strengthening of families.

He said that, in the coming months, the PN's general secretary, Paul Borg Olivier, would be organising a conference for those who were outside politics, with the purpose of listening to ideas and to set out the agenda for the future, while keeping solidarity at the core.

"We need to look at those who are the most vulnerable," he said, adding that one of the country's pillars was its strong voluntary sector which had helped many people over the years.

Lashing out at Labour leader Joseph Muscat, Dr Gonzi said that, although he had promised a new season in politics, Dr Muscat had not delivered. The incidents of the past days - when the PL stormed out of Parliament after a series of events that started with Parliamentary Secretary Mario Galea making a mistake during a vote - had made him lose all trust in the Labour leader.

"Politics is not a toy in our hands. There are many people whose future depends on our decisions," he emphasised.

He said the slogan chosen by the PN for the 2008 general election, Together Everything Is Possible, was not a cliché, but purposely meant to prepare people for the problems that were on the horizon at the time.

"I was hopeful that the PL would have learnt from the country's history that we overcame challenges when we were united," he said.

Dr Gonzi said it was no thanks to the Opposition that the country's deficit had been reduced from 4.3 per cent to 3.8 per cent of GDP. "Had it been up to the Opposition, we would not have made any changes, but left subsidies and ended up with a huge deficit."

He said that, while Dr Muscat criticised the government's decision to build a new power station in Delimara, he did not come up with an alternative proposal. "You don't find proposals, just mudslinging."

He said the government was investing €150 million in a cable between Malta and Sicily instead of building another power turbine in a bid to safeguard people's health and the environment.

Referring to the shipyards' privatisation, Dr Gonzi said that, for the first time in decades, the shipyard could become a contributor to the economy rather than costing the country €25 million a year in subsidies.

However, people should not lose hope because, while in government, the PN would ensure the country "climbed the mountain".

Earlier, Nationalist MEP David Casa said in three years in the European Parliament, Dr Muscat had made several mistakes when voting. "I have a file with his mistakes," he said, adding that during a vote about abortion, Dr Muscat had even made a mistake when he went to fix his first mistake.

Health Minister Joe Cassar said the number of ophthalmology and orthopaedics operations had increased and this should result in a reduction in waiting lists.

The PN's former treasurer, Peter Darmanin, who was yesterday honoured for the 32 years working for the party, urged councillors to look ahead but keep sight of the past.

"Whoever forgets the past will relive it," he said.