Change would continue because that was what the Labour Party was elected for, Prime Minister Joseph Muscat said this morning.

The change so far, which people were now taking for granted, included lower power tariffs, free childcare and reduced tax for first-time buyers, he said at a Labour activity in Zebbug.

Changes in the pipeline included an easier property transfer mechanism and regularisation of properties that in the past may have had minor alternations made and which were making it difficult for owners to sell.

One could not act like nothing had happened, as this was unfair on those who obeyed the law, Dr Muscat said. A fair balance was therefore being struck and proportional penalties were being imposed. 

Dr Muscat confirmed a story in The Sunday Times of Malta that properties may be bartered for overdue tax, saying this would enable the government to have a bigger stock of houses for social housing. The value of such properties was independently verified, he said. As a result millions of tax arrears were settled and the government had more properties for those in need.

"The easiest way not to be criticised is to do nothing, but this is a government that is ready to take decisions and be scrutinised," Dr Muscat said.

New animal hospital

Dr Muscat said the new animal hospital (in Ta' Qali), which he was inaugurating today, was an idea of the former government, but it was the present government which realised it, in association with the private sector.

Under the former government, what Malta had was a clinic which did not even hold a permit for animals to be kept overnight.

Now Malta had a state of the art facility of the sort that was not even found in Southern Italy and some animals would even be brought to Malta from Sicily. 

Budget measures

Dr Muscat underlined measures in the budget notably improvements in pensions and social benefits. He also stressed that no one had done as much as the present government to ensure women could have financial independence. Apart from free childcare, he said, major changes had been made in maternity leave, to ensure that employers did not discriminate between men and women during recruitment. 

He also hit out at the introduction of new second pillar pensions which, he said, the opposition wanted to introduce, saying it would impose a heavy burden on the workers. 

Referring to calls by NGOs for a review and a raise of the minimum wage, Dr Muscat said he was pleased that the discussion had started. The government agreed that the minimum wage was not enough but this was not something which the government should impose unilaterally. The government was prepared to engage everyone on the cost of living mechanism and the minimum wage before ultimately taking decisions, he said.

Dr Muscat said he was proud of what the government had achieved and the way it was following its plans to ensure that growth benefited everyone.