Prime Minister Joseph Muscat said that mid-way through this legislature, the government would continue to focus on economic growth, but also on ensuring that those at the lower echelons of society benefited more from growth.

The government would also focus on getting Air Malta back on its feet.

Speaking in a recorded interview on One Radio, Dr Muscat said the country was enjoying the fruit of early decisions this government had taken, such as electricity bills which were now realistic, free childcare services.

These were among the decisions which had ensured that the economy was now among the best performing in Europe.   

More jobs were being created and it had become almost routine for the government to observe every month that the unemployment was among the lowest ever and among the lowest in the EU.

The last time unemployment was so low was 35 years ago. Fewer than 5,000 were registering for work compared to over 8,000 when this government took office.

The government would continue to work for more jobs, as well as better working conditions, Dr Muscat said. In this context, the government welcomed a GWU proposal to improve working conditions for hotel workers.

Referring to the Budget measures, Dr Muscat said that among the most important was the way how 12,000 pensioners were, from this month, receiving a higher pension.  This was the first pensions rise in 25 years, and the government wanted to see even more.

The Budget had also ushered in more income tax cuts.

There had also been a cut in fuel prices. Under this government, he said, prices were reduced even when international oil prices rose under a policy of price stability and certainty.

The government had also brought in higher allowances for uniformed personnel and was giving more assistance to sports organisations. However, Dr Muscat stressed that the recent reduction of VAT in sports needed to be felt directly by sportsmen and women and should not be retained by the gyms. How was it that some gyms had actually raised prices and the reduced VAT was not passed on? This was something the competition authorities would be looking at, he said.

Earlier Dr Muscat also highlighted other government achievements, saying the problem of out of stock medicines had been solved. There were no waiting lists for heart operations and lists were being reduced drastically in other areas such as cataracts and even MRI scans. The focus now was on orthopaedic operations such as hip and knee replacements.

The emergency department had reduced waiting time to less than three hours in 90 per cent of cases. This means enormous progress.

The former shipbuilding would soon be turned into a maritime hub and he hoped the adjudication of the white rocks complex project would be completed soon.