The Government is failing to give due importance to agriculture, fisheries, food supply and animal welfare

The PN says this Budget has once again failed to prioritise farmers, livestock breeders and fishers, as well as veterinary services and animal welfare

What tangible results will fishers, farmers, livestock breeders and those who love or work with animals see from this Budget?

During a Partit Nazzjonalista press conference addressed by Shadow Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food Supply Toni Bezzina, Shadow Minister for Animal Welfare Janice Abela Chetcuti and PN Spokesperson for Veterinary Services Andrew Agius, the speakers said that this Budget had failed to reassure farmers, fishers and livestock breeders that the Government was safeguarding their sector.

They said that the future of agriculture was threatened, among other things, by shortages of land and water, with not every farmer having access to New Water. They criticised the fact that the vegetable market (Pitkalija) had been the subject of government promises for years, yet the investment so urgently needed in a facility crucial to our food supply was still not being made. They said that substantial investment in a food security strategy was also necessary.

The speakers asked how many fishers had managed to benefit from funding to invest in their vessels and also highlighted the lack of investment in fisheries infrastructure. One example is the Marsalforn breakwater, which the Government has been promising for years but which remains an unfulfilled promise.

The PN speakers said that this Budget once again exposed a Government with no plan to encourage more young people to enter agriculture and fisheries — sectors crucial to our food supply chain.

They also spoke about the lack of transparency surrounding funds allocated to animal welfare and the problems affecting veterinary services.

The animal hospital opened by a Nationalist Government and closed by this Government more than three years ago remains shut. Meanwhile, students enrolled in courses related to veterinary services have nowhere to undertake their practical training and are having to turn to small private clinics. The speakers said that, in this case, the Government had put the cart before the horse, and these students now had to find some way of obtaining their practical training abroad.

This is in addition to the trauma experienced by many people who have lost their pets because of the absence of this hospital.

The Budget failed to address the serious problems facing many animal sanctuaries, which are run by dedicated people who give not only a great deal of their time but also substantial sums of their own money.

The Partit Nazzjonalista hopes that the Government will start prioritising crucial sectors such as agriculture and fisheries, and provide the necessary support to ensure that our animals, both household pets and farm animals, receive the care they deserve when they need it.

10.11.2026