Prime Minister Joseph Muscat said this morning that the government would surprise the opposition in the forthcoming Budget. He said the Budget was currently being discussed with the European Commission. The talks were tough sometimes, but the government had nothing to hide and it would tomorrow publish the reports and studies presented to the commission.
Speaking at Rabat Labour Party Club, Dr Muscat said that over the past week the people could see marked differences between the government and the opposition. They could see a government which in six months achieved results which others found impossible in 25 years.
This government achieved stability in gas prices, whereas the PN government used to say that was impossible because of international price fluctuations. The same applied for fuel. All this was good news for domestic and business consumers.
This government had convinced China to invest in Enemalta, which was a millstone for the Maltese economy with over €800 million debts. The Opposition had falselyclaimed that the Chinese would have their hands on Malta's electricity switch - when they would have only a minority stake in Enemalta.
Dr Muscat said the government wanted to see a country that was fairer and stronger.
It was very good news that Moody's had revised their outlook to stable after the negative rating before the election. This would boost the economy and reinforce the general feeling that Malta was moving forward, that the time of opportunity beckoned.
The only people who had a negative outlook were Opposition leader Simon Busuttil and his team. Dr Busuttil had run down the country by saying it was the worse in the EU.
Referring to Tuesday's Opposition walkout from Parliament, Dr Muscat said Dr Busuttil had made a very serious accusation that he (the prime minister) interfered in the Police Commissioner's work. This was not a political judgement but a statement of fact. He therefore had to substantiate what he said, in terms of Standing Orders. He also had to respect the Speaker's ruling. Dr Busuttil's walkout appeared to be an attempt to hide his mistake.
That action was disproportionate. He was taking decisions quickly and he was always finding himself against the current.
STIPENDS
Dr Muscat said he was angered this week when 'somebody' decided, without political authorisation, that some students who used to receive stipends would no longer be eligible for them.
He had ordered an investigation, and the decision was reversed, because government policy was to strengthen the stipends, not remove them.
Dr Muscat hailed the record in tourist arrivals achieved in August after a few weeks of work by the Tourism Ministry. Even better results would be achieved, and it was good news that British Airways would return to Malta with a daily flight.
STRONG REACTIONS TO CALLS FOR EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST
He noted that more than 40 companies had submitted expressions of interest for the development of a maritime hub at the former Malta Shipbuilding yard, when there was previously no response to similar calls.
Expectations had been exceeded in the way how 14 consortia had applied to develop a cruise liner terminal and a yacht marina in Gozo.
As for the excessive deficit procedure, Dr Muscat said the European Commission had been convinced by the Maltese government that it could within two years bring the deficit back within acceptable limits. However that would actually be achieved by the end of this year when the deficit would slip back below 3% of GDP without harming taxpayers.
The government was currently negotiating the forthcoming Budget with the European Commission. Tomorrow the government would publish the studies and reports which it sent to the European Commission.
The government, he said, would keep its electoral promises, starting from the forthcoming Budget. The Opposition, he said to applause, was sinking in negativity, and it was in for a surprise when the Budget was presented.
"This is a government which can surprise, through its ideas and through the agreements it reaches," he said.
Touching on foreign affairs, he said a meeting held at the request of Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov had unblocked stagnation in relations between the two countries, and a Russian envoy would come to Malta next month to discuss ways of moving relations forward.