The tax rebate cheques sent out by the government are an insult and a joke, PN leader Adrian Delia said on Wednesday.
Speaking during an interview on Net FM, Dr Delia questioned the timing of the tax rebate cheques sent in the post a few weeks ago. The cheques always came round before an election or if there was "some battle the government wants to wage", he said.
"People are realising the government is making fun of them," Dr Delia said, adding it was a populist move to try to buy off people's vote. The government instead, should look at improving our taxation system, he added.
Speaking on Workers' Day, Dr Delia said the government needed to look at better incentives to improve the economy. The government had conceded it needed a long-term plan, with Finance Minister Edward Scicluna admitting authorities were looking to take a more prudent approach to economic growth following unprecedented development.
This, Dr Delia said, meant the government justified all that the Opposition has been saying in the past 18 months since he was elected.
Economic growth in Malta was like a cake, he said: the cake kept on growing, but people’s slice of the cake remained stuck at the same size. Our wages registered the lowest increase in Europe, while prices for essentials kept going up, he added.
"The government has not succeeded to govern in giving people their equal share," he concluded.
'A fight between Nationalism and Socialism'
Dr Delia obliquely addressed comments by Prime Minister Joseph Muscat that the upcoming May elections were a choice between the two party leaders.
The choice, the Opposition leader insisted, was between the Nationalist and a Socialist party.
The government will not change following the European Parliament elections, however, the election could trigger a change in the government’s attitude, Dr Delia reiterated.
The Prime Minister "does not want to accept this fight," he said. "[Dr Muscat] did not support the EU and he did not support local councils," Dr Delia said. The Prime Minister recently told supporters local councils were never his "favourite thing".
The European Socialist and Democrat Party, which the Maltese Labour Party formed a part of, supported abortion and tax harmonisation, Dr Delia warned. A vote for Labour MEPs would signal support for these two measures, he added.
MEPs’ work was also crucial to defend Malta by criticising the government on a European level, he said. The government has captured the police force, the Armed Forces and a number of other institutions, he added.
“It is fundamental that we have at least three MEPs that can protect us,” he said.
He encouraged people to go out and vote for change.
'Prioritise Maltese agriculture,' Delia tells Manfred Weber
European People’s Party head Manfred Weber promised to prioritise helping Maltese agriculture if elected as president of the European Commission, Dr Delia said.
The government wants to destroy farmers, farms and the fishing industry, the PN leader warned.
“With tears in their eyes, farmers have told me [the industry] does not have another 10 or 15 years left,” Dr Delia added. Unlike the government, the PN was making a strong declaration that it supported Maltese produce.
Labour 'afraid of challenges'
The Labour party was always afraid of challenges – first by saying EU membership would be too challenging and then by taking power away from councils, Dr Delia said.
Speaking on the 15-year anniversary of EU membership, Dr Delia said the PN had always shown trust in its youth, in workers and in small businesses.
From the 1980s onwards, the PN had always shown that trust in the Maltese workforce was fundamental, he said.
Dr Delia ended his interview by encouraging people to donate to the party’s ongoing fund-raising marathon, saying the party did not have a government that could use its resources for its campaign.
“We depend on people’s generosity and participation,” he said.