Job creation is the government's number one priority and this should not be overshadowed by issues like the extension of the St John’s Co-Cathedral Museum, the Prime Minister said when speaking at Sannat today.

He said the governemnt could not control a situation where factories saw a drop in orders because of low demand abroad, however many investors were still interested in bringing their businesses to Malta, and this was the kind of action the government needed to promote as much as possible.

Dr Gonzi insisted that the country was still managing to retain its strengths throughout the global economic crisis and this was thanks especially to the fact that Malta adopted the euro and joined the EU. He said that the fact that Malta has remained strong was not out of coincidence, but thanks to the sacrifices that were made before this year.

Dr Gonzi said that the manufacturing industry was vulnerable at the moment, but all the government could guarantee is that it would work day and night to increase the number of jobs.

He said that the Opposition should stop trying to waste people’s time by distracting the public on petty issues. He criticised those who doubted the competence and seriousness of the Malta Resources Authority and said that in the same way it had been regulating fuel prices for the past four years, it should continue regulating the price of water and electricity.

He said that the unions’ biggest disagreement with the utility tariffs was that the eco-reduction for single-person households was not enough, but, he insisted that this did not make sense since the government should focus on helping those most in need, like families and those below the poverty line.

Speaking at the same event, Finance Minister Tonio Fenech told workers of ST Microelectronics not to lose faith because if they did so their productivity would decrease and the Maltese government would lose its bargaining position. The government, he said, had to convince ST to remain in Malta rather than move its business elsewhere as had already happened with the factories in many European countries, which were moved to Asia. He also stressed that the media should be careful in its reporting of such events because it could jeopardise the future of workers by creating more uncertainty.