Restricting politicians' wiggle room would lead to more honest people in politics, PL leader Joseph Muscat said this evening. 

"Politicians who have nothing to hide should welcome increased scrutiny. It is those who don't fight corruption who are corrupt," Dr Muscat told a Qrendi crowd gathered outdoors to watch the PL leader on One TV programme Fis-Sustanza. 

Dr Muscat said politicians could no longer sit back and turn to the electorate every five years come election-time, with technology having "ended that form of politics for good".

He mentioned the rise of a local online protest movement against international copyright treaty ACTA as a case in point. "People are more informed, more assertive and more willing to stand up for their rights than ever before. Government must adapt to this," he said. 

Dr Muscat criticised the Nationalist Party for its vow to give every schoolchild a free tablet, describing the proposal as a "technological giveaway" in contrast to the PL's "literacy project", which he said would see heightened investment in local and school libraries and more power devolved from central educational structures to local schools. 

"Research shows that there's a direct correlation between access to books and literacy. Tablets are just a tool - they must be put to good use. There are many issues which must be taken into account, not least problems highlighted by the Malta Union of Teachers, which is why we want to introduce them incrementally," he said. 

Dr Muscat also spoke about the PL's proposals for small businesses and part-time workers, which he said would chop €300 off the tax bill of approximately 20,000 people, and said new business startups would get a tax credit on their first €8,000 in earnings, valid for four years.