During the debate by the Chamber of Commerce, moderated by Rachel Bondi Attard, the Chamber of Commerce warned the Prime Minister that the international situation does not warrant massive electoral pledges and asked him where he would find the money to finance them. The Chamber of Commerce had previously warned of risks of excessive government expenditure and running an election campaign like a supermarket of pledges and promises.
Prime Minister Robert Abela reiterated that the Labour Partyโs fiscal estimates and pledged expenditure would be sustained by continued economic growth. He also said that these estimates were based on โcompetenceโ and โcredibilityโ.
The Prime Minister also said that public debt would have been much higher had electricity and fuel subsidies not been issued.
Alex Borg warned that the quality of tourism is decreasing, as shown by the declining average spend per tourist. Borg also said that the Nationalist Party would be more democratic and transparent with public finances, adding that he would reduce the use of direct orders to give more opportunities to businesses.
The Prime Minister was also asked whether refusing to give a super-bonus to foreign workers was racism or socialism, but he reiterated that this model is similar to Nordic models and ensures the sustainability of Maltaโs pensions system, which is sustained by the contributions of the foreign workforce.
Alex Borg was asked whether the Nationalist Party is proposing to reduce the number of foreign workers in Malta. Borg replied that Malta already has a high population density, together with heavy tourism arrivals, and that this problem needs to be addressed. He said that population growth is damaging the countryโs infrastructure and must be managed.
Borg also said that nurses and midwives have some of the lowest salaries in the public sector and that these salaries need to increase to attract more Maltese workers into the sector. He concluded by saying that a national population agency would issue a labour and population study to achieve a sustainable plan for population growth.
Prime Minister Robert Abela attacked the Nationalist Partyโs proposed metro system, saying that it would cost more than the PN is claiming. He also argued that Malta is already implementing mass transport.
The Prime Minister was asked whether incentives for car purchases, along with fuel subsidies, were increasing traffic in Malta, but he insisted that subsidies were important to safeguard the economy.
Alex Borg appeared to share the Labour Partyโs ideas on energy, saying that energy bills would go down with renewable energy sources, which is also Labourโs plan. However Alex Borg tried to distinguish himself by saying that the Nationalist Party was always pro-European and forward-looking and the Labour government was enjoying the fruits of economic sectors built by Nationalist governments.
You can find a link to the debate here.
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