Malta needs to start showing its teeth and not allow anyone to push it around on illegal immigration, Labour leader Joseph Muscat said yesterday.
People's dignity should be respected, he said. But he again accused the government of being spineless during the recent rift with Italy after the neighbouring country refused to take 66 migrants rescued near Lampedusa who were instead brought to Malta.
"We have a spineless government which does not know what to do when faced with a crisis," Dr Muscat said.
It is the second time in three days that he has made this argument, after dedicating a good chunk of his May Day speech on Friday to the handling of last week's stand-off with Italy.
Yesterday at a political activity near the worker's memorial monument in Msida, he accused the government of managing "by crisis", insisting that there should be a strategy.
His speech comes as the European Parliament is due to vote this week on a package of measures to improve the EU's asylum system and strengthen the rights of asylum seekers.
Dr Muscat's tough talk was mixed with concern for immigrants who are being paid a mere €2 a day for work in the construction industry. "This is unacceptable abuse which also creates unfair competition for Maltese workers," he said.
"The solution does not lie in taking it out on migrants but against the politicians who do not have the spine to act."
The Nationalist Party reacted to Dr Muscat's speech by accusing him of putting partisan politics ahead of the national interest in his attack on the government's handling of the dispute with Italy.
But Dr Muscat's attack was not limited exclusively to the immigration front. The Labour leader also whipped up the ongoing fraud investigation at the VAT department.
He highlighted the fact that the government has not yet said who would carry the political and administrative responsibility for the case, adding that it was the Maltese people who would pay the price for this corruption.
The Finance Ministry also issued a statement defending this point, saying that the police had been asked to investigate the case and take all the necessary action.
"Rather than being serious, the Opposition has embarked on a systematic campaign while investigations are underway. It is a mistake to turn the investigation into a political football," the ministry said, adding that giving information at this time could jeopardise the investigation.