Some 6,000 children who were at risk of poverty in 2013 were living in economic safety today, Prime Minister Joseph Muscat said on Sunday.

Speaking to party supporters in Vittoriosa, Dr Muscat said recently published figures showed that the government's efforts to reduce poverty were working.

"We have made a difference, this can be seen in the figures and data that is coming from across the board," he said.

Dr Muscat referred to meetings he recently had with "big investors", saying their main concern was that there were not enough workers.

"This is why we are saying we need more people to come here and work - we have a dream of a metropolitan Malta, and there are things you simply cannot achieve with just 400,000 people," he said.

Read: Thousands more foreign workers are needed to keep the economy on track

Dr Muscat warned against xenophobic sentiments towards foreigners coming to work in Malta.

The Prime Minister said foreign workers were contributing in taxes that paid for social benefits, education, and other state funded measures.

They were paying for pensions they were unlikely to receive as most foreigners only stayed on the island for a few years.

"Yes they might take a bit, but they are giving a lot," Dr Muscat said, adding that the Maltese would still be given priority in job opportunities.

Dr Muscat again appealed to Opposition leader Adrian Delia not to go down the same path as his predecessor.

"I am sure this is not what Dr Delia wants, but it is what a few who think the 2013 election, as well as that earlier this year, never happened, want," he said.