Leader of the Opposition Joseph Muscat told Parliament that Labour wanted real economic growth to cut deficits, help businesses and create sustainable jobs. The government would win the vote of confidence but would not solve its crisis.

We know exactly what we want on the tariffs

Dr Muscat predicted that within three months the government would make a major U-turn on the power station extension, announcing that it would be operating on diesel and not on heavy fuel oil. He also said that the government had failed to implement cuts in utility tariffs for the tourist industry according to an agreed plan.

The government was cut off from reality and was living in an atmosphere of surreal triumphalism. The Prime Minister was a political hostage within his own party and was endangering the stability of the country. His political leadership was weak and instead of facing the problem it tried to convince others that it did not exist. He had called this motion of confidence not to deal with the international crisis or the international price of oil or because of the situation in Air Malta and utility costs but because his majority was defective.

The Prime Minister had assumed responsibility for Minister’s Gatt failure and had appointed a task force under his leadership making a seventh change in the transport reform.

Dr Muscat said that the opposition had cooperated with the government on a number of important changes. From the outset, it had also supported the government on the Libyan conflict.

The government had lost its direction on a number of issues including divorce, which also showed the Prime Minister’s and the PN’s anachronistic position.

Dr Muscat said that the Prime Minister’s serious decisions meant increasing utility tariffs while at the same time increasing his and the Cabinet’s salaries by €500 per week. In other countries, politicians had declared that they would be freezing their salaries.

The opposition knew exactly what it wanted on the utility tariffs. It would consider the international situation and it would deliver what it promised without increasing the deficit or the national debt.

The Prime Minister had not kept his electoral promise of reducing income tax and that of reducing utility tariffs if oil prices fell below €85 per barrel.

The opposition had more than one solution on reducing utility tariffs while the government had discarded the one solution it had and which was later revealed by EU Commissioner John Dalli. He accused the Prime Minister of discarding this solution in the interest of the few. The government had also failed to explain how Malta exported more oil than it imported. He added that also the credit rating agencies agreed on Malta’s ratings they had also said that the government had failed to reach its financial aims.

The Prime Minister had also voted in favour of the EU recommendation to link retirement age with life expectancy. This either meant increasing the retirement age or making people retire at 65 years of age and not earlier.

The government had squandered taxpayers’ money on the Fairmount contract and in the new parliamentary building. The money to be spent on this building was 75 per cent more than the support that the government had given industry to safeguard jobs. These jobs were safeguarded because employers had a social conscience and did not lay off workers. Labour governments had feared conservative forces in introducing maternity leave, old age pensions, the minimum wage, free health care and housing for the needy. It did not fear anyone in making a success of Maltese banks, in setting up the Freeport and Sea Malta.

Dr Muscat concluded that the present crisis would persist because the Prime Minister was no longer at the helm of his party.

Labour deputy leader Anġlu Farrugia said the motion was the fruit of the mess created by Minister Austin Gatt and because Prime Minister felt that he was unstable and not strong enough. The government had lost all direction and was leading with just a few, becoming an oligarchy. It was power hungry.

The Prime Minister was weak with his ministers and strong with the citizens. Dr Gonzi’s leadership had failed. The national deficit reached €5 billion after all the national assets were sold and after Malta received EU funds.