Rosianne Cutajar, Labour MP

As politicians, we have been entrusted by the people to hold office on their behalf, better their lives and take the country forward on all fronts. Rather than handing out ‘gifts’, we are here to work hard and deliver results. Those who elect us are listening, watching, making their assessment of us all the time. It is our constituents who give us the gift of their attention and their feedback on how we are performing, and where we can do better. And that is a gift I truly cherish.

What I would like to see in the near future is an overhaul of the law regulating drugs, drug abuse and drug trafficking. During the last legislature, this government finally had the courage to address certain aspects of our drug laws to give people a chance to take hold of their lives once more, not through punishment by incarceration, but by using alternative means of reform. Still more needs to be done.

It is of the essence that justice is handed down in reasonable time, for the sake of both the accused and their victims. As the saying goes, justice delayed is justice denied. What is the point of imprisoning someone over a misdeed committed a decade ago and who has since reformed, gone through rehabilitation, brought themselves back on the right track?

I am by no means saying we should depenalise abuse. But we have to hand down formative sentences, ones that can lead the person to understanding the effects and consequences of his or her actions, and then reform on that basis. Of what use are rehab centres if the successful ones then find themselves behind bars?

We have successfully carried out large-scale reforms and our people are already feeling their benefits

I’m glad the Prime Minister made reference to my address of this issue. This is a reform-minded government. We have successfully carried out large-scale reforms and our people are already feeling their benefits. I’m confident we can carry this one through as well.

Right now we’re building a modern country with a strong economy – we’re consistently at the forefront of the EU member-state economies and we’re resolved to keep up the ante. We can do this by investing in our infrastructure to make it more supportive of the needs of a growing economy. This also means building a stronger social infrastructure, and continuing to invest in more quality housing and accommodation for lower-income-earning families and individuals.

As we plan our policies, equity and upward mobility are foremost on our minds. A country’s economy is only as strong as the happiness and progress of all of its people – regardless of their background. In the next months you will see more social measures coming into place, aimed at taking those less economically privileged into a better quality of life.

I trust that those currently making up the Opposition also want the same direction. Recent events seem to have distracted the Opposition’s attention from making useful proposals for a more equal, just and progressive Malta.

Come to think of it – yes, there is one important gift the Maltese people should receive this year, and that is the gift of a functional Opposition.

So far, the Opposition has sought to harm our country’s successes by spinning the lie that our institutions are suffering. If there is an institution – a pillar of democracy – that is suffering and needs attention right now, it’s precisely the Opposition. Charity begins at home.

The Maltese don’t like to hand the gift of power to individuals who plot and scheme in silence behind their backs, and behind each other’s backs. Our country deserves better – it deserves an Opposition that does not instill fear in our people.

As a government we will cherish the gift of prosperity with a purpose – a more equal, a wealthier, a healthier Malta. A social Malta.

Claudio Grech, Opposition spokesman on the economy

Christmas is over. The New Year celebrations done. Another year ushered in with the hope that it will mend the hurts, build the bridges burnt in the last and usher in some common sense in our decision-making and political actions and leadership.

The murder of Daphne Caruana Galizia exposed the rot in our society and somewhat uncovered the double-standards and hypocrisy that have now seeped in. It is a rot driven by the substitution of human values with cold and heartless balance sheets and where everything has a price tag.

A tangible gift for the people is a string of open spaces across our communities

Hard-working families with no access to get-rich-quick solutions are left behind, are made to keep on carrying the largest share of the burden to fund the often questionable public spend with even more questionable public value derived thereof.

From where I stand the three gifts we, the Maltese people, should be given have one common denominator: the common good.

The first gift the people should be given is something many had but may have lost along the way: dignity. In a country that boasts unparalleled economic growth and double-digit growth in property prices, there are too many people being stripped off their dignity. The sub-standard living conditions of the inner harbour communities; the thousands seeking social accommodation; the trauma of having to leave your rented home; the agony of those who struggle with the social and economic costs of a drug addict in their family; and the plight of immigrants lining up streets to be pimped for a job.

These people need the gift of dignity which can be derived through a radical overhaul of our inclusion systems, security, social welfare along with a fairer distribution of wealth agenda. These people also need to have their dignity and indeed their emotional intelligence respected, not manipulated by shameless populism, showmanship and spin.

Secondly, a tangible gift the people should be given  is a string of open spaces across our communities. In a country which is so tight on space, we do not only need to conserve our open spaces but also lead a process to create new ones, giving back our villages to our young ones instead of creating more concrete shadows. Open spaces are the oxygen of livability and fundamental requisites for the welfare of our communities and the improvement of our people’s quality of life, particularly those who are in need. As Voltaire had put it: “God gave us the gift of life; it is up to us to give ourselves the gift of living well.”

We tend to forget that life is not merely about numbers and bank accounts but more about the small free joys that make us belong to our surroundings and integral to our communities. This is what we should aspire for in terms of recreation for our young ones, and not legislate to introduce drugs as a recreational object or eat up every square metre with soulless concrete. And this is why the State should invest in the quality of life of people through a mix of policy and investment embark on a path to gift local communities with new open and green public spaces.

The third gift the Maltese people should be given is the opportunity to break away from tribal politics, petty debates and the consistent avoidance of anything of substance. Both our political discourse and actions are becoming increasingly hollow, inspired by populism and designed to perpetuate clientelism.

Our people need politicians willing to ditch theatrical stances, capable to understand complex social issues and willing to embrace a sound policy-driven approach which seeks the attainment of the common good. The people are crying out for a voice of reason which leaves behind partisan prejudice and looks forward to a modern political agenda determined by popular needs and not populist demands.

Politics, like life, needs a purpose. If just for a year we put these three gifts as our common purpose, I am hopeful that collectively as a nation our year will end much better than it started and we will truly guide the country onto the path of sustainability, quality of life, justice and equity.

If you would like to put any questions to the two parties in Parliament send an e-mail marked clearly Question Time to editor@timesofmalta.com.