Labour supporters gathered under the tent in Mtarfa tonight got a mini-lesson on rating agencies by Joseph Muscat.

Interviewed by Miriam Dalli, the Labour leader spoke about the credit rating downgrade of the economy by international agency Standard and Poor's.

The agency report was out on the same day the Nationalist Party launched a billboard lauding the country's sound public finances.

And Dr Muscat did not let the irony pass by. "While on Malta's roads the PN is telling people how strong public finances are, the government received a bad certificate for its economic management."

Dr Muscat laughed off criticism earlier in the day by Finance Minister Tonio Fenech who blamed the downgrade on Labour's lack of support for the Budget.

"I have to apologize for yesterday's hailstorm because they will soon blame it on me," he joked as a bemused audience looked on.

He reiterated that the S&P downgrade did not take Labour by surprise and the decision will not impact the electoral manifesto. Dr Muscat said the same analysis of the economy underpinned the proposals Labour was making.

Dr Muscat also spoke of the parliamentary reforms a Labour government would  introduce, including the payment of the honoraria per sitting attended and the introduction of a petitions committee with clear guidelines on how to handle petitions from the public.

Dr Muscat added that a Labour government will embark on "a fast reform by the end of the year" to overhaul the judicial system.

He said the Labour Party was serene because it had done its homework over the past four years and managed to build around it a movement that stretched beyond the party.