Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi underlined government assistance to families and business when he spoke in a Radio 101 interview today.

He said that manufacturing industry, thanks to this government, was evolving into new sectors such as pharmaceutical and bio-medicals. This government created 20,000 jobs in the past four years, despite the difficult economic climate.

Many mothers had also been encouraged to return to work, benefiting from advantageous tax schemes. The government also introduced new tax schemes for families and for pensioners who opted to continue to work, while retaining their pension.

The government was also working to ensure that widows would not lose their widows' pension when they went to work.

A new scheme for job creation in Gozo had served to create 450 new jobs there.

Dr Gonzi pointed out how the government was spending millions of euro on the energy benefit to ease the cost of electricity and gas for low income families. The recent increase in gas prices meant that the government was spending €1.5m more on the energy benefit.

The government wanted families to have more money in their pockets. This year, apart from the improved tax for families, the government was giving a special allowance for those over 80 years old, tax credits of up to €1,300 to parents who paid for their children's education in private schools and generous investment incentive schemes to help SMEs, such as subsidised loans.

Life was also being made easier for the self-employed. A consultation process had just been launched to cut back on bureaucracy, which cost time and money. But it was worth remembering how much progress had been made in this sector, with many formalities now settled through IT instead of long queues.

More would be done as the economy improved.

The government was no longer subsidising loss-making enterprises but was using that money where it was needed, such as education, health and job-creation.

Dr Gonzi said education remained an important pillar of government activity and the key to a prosperous future. It was an area where the difference between Labour and the PN was most evident.  This government had thrown open the university's doors and set up the ITS and Mcast.

People wanted to study more than ever before and the opportunities where to study were never so broad.

Several new schools had been built and the schools were now much better equipped than before. And the PN government always kept its word on university stipends, Dr Gonzi said. Spending on stipends was now €23 million every year, and it was money well spent.

Dr Gonzi said that as Labour made every sort of promise, the people should quietly reflect how their promises would be funded. Where would the money come from? Would important sectors such as education be scaled back as a consequence? Was anything more important than education and health?

Health, Dr Gonzi said, was not just about having a modern hospital, but also about preventing illness and detecting disease early. Therefore, programmes such as breast screening and, more recently, the colorectal screening, were extremely important.

The government was also extending the variety of medicines which it was providing. Work was also proceeding fast on the new cancer hospital adjoining Mater Dei. It was a source of pride, Dr Gonzi said, that Malta had kept medical services free of charge in difficult economic circumstances. It did so because it set proper priorities, and that was what it would continue to do.

Just as important for health was having a healthy environment and the government had therefore improved waste management and closed Maghtab. It had also improved air quality through the bus service reform.

GROSS INCOMPETENCE

Dr Gonzi accused Labour of gross incompetence over its motion calling for the resignation of Richard Cachia Caruana. That motion, he said, was based on a Wikileak. That communication was about an access to documents which were of interest to Malta. Mr Cachia Caruana, in the national interest, had argued that there was a way how the Americans could show those documents to Malta.

The incompetent opposition understood this to mean a plan for Malta to rejoin PfP, when this was not the case.

This was superficiality and another case how the opposition harmed Malta's reputation abroad, Dr Gonzi said.

Another case was the reported comments made by Dr Muscat to the N.Korean ambassador. Even if one took Labour's word that Dr Muscat was misquoted by the N. Korean media, Labour then went on to make comments whose meaning was that Muscat had defended the North Korea's right to test fire a missile, in defiance of the whole world.

Dr Gonzi said the people should be careful in their electoral choices and who they entrusted the country to.