This Christmas, Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi is hoping to spend some quiet time with his family, yet is not too hopeful that he will manage.

“There might be some developments with regards to the eurozone crisis which will keep me busy,” he says. “But that is the life of a politician, and that is the life I chose,” he says.

In an exclusive interview with www.timesofmalta.com, Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi recalls his childhood Christmases – beautiful memories which, he says, every family has and cherishes.

As a boy, the Prime Minister used to believe that Father Christmas exists.

“I used to stay up to try and see him deliver my presents – yet I never managed to catch him red-handed,” he says.

The Prime Minister believes that 2012 will be a challenging year.

“Yet we should see these challenges as opportunities,” he says.