This Budget must address the country’s biggest problems

In Ħaż-Żebbuġ, the PN Leader outlines the priorities for tomorrow’s Budget, saying it must look towards future generations rather than the next election

If this Budget fails to address the country’s most evident problems, the people of Malta and Gozo will face even greater problems in the years ahead.

During a political event this morning, Partit Nazzjonalista Leader Alex Borg outlined the priorities that should be addressed in the first Budget since the Labour Government launched its vision for the country up to 2050.

These include education and training aligned with the country’s economic plan, as happened when a Nationalist Government introduced aviation courses, enabling it to subsequently attract substantial investment in a sector that continues to provide hundreds of quality jobs.

This Budget should help businesses become more productive through support for AI, digitalisation, technology and robotics. Alex Borg said businesses are asking what happened to the €100 million the Government promised last year for investment in technology.

He also stressed the need for a clear path for businesses, entrepreneurs and start-ups to expand internationally. He said Malta has entrepreneurs with vision and ability. With a Government that believes in them and gives them the tools they need, Maltese entrepreneurs can be the best in the world and take their success beyond our shores.

The Partit Nazzjonalista Leader said this Budget must demonstrate discipline and direction in capital investment. There must be a serious plan, and investment that addresses the problems facing our energy and water supplies, roads, hospitals and public services.

He insisted that we have been living with mediocrity for years.

“We deserve better. We should not accept spending hours in traffic, being left without electricity summer after summer, paying bills twice as high as normal, as is happening now, or having seas polluted with sewage. We should not keep accepting all this.”

This Budget must look towards the next generation rather than the next election — towards children with dreams and aspirations, ensuring they can fulfil those dreams and achieve their ambitions.

The Partit Nazzjonalista Leader referred to the latest EY survey, which found that only 3% of the country’s growth came from productivity and that Malta recorded a 0.9% decline in real productivity per hour worked.

53% of those who participated in the study said that, despite working more and selling more, their income had either fallen or remained unchanged.

Alex Borg referred to the TomTom Traffic Index, which shows that Maltese people spend 94 hours a year stuck in traffic — the equivalent of 12 working days wasted on a problem this Government created and now does not know how to solve, while around 80 new licences for vehicles are issued every day.

The Partit Nazzjonalista Leader said he would no longer speak about an alternative Government, but about a better Government. “Over the next four years, the PN must work to earn greater trust so that, just as it united to achieve an independent Malta and worked to make Malta part of Europe, we can once again grow stronger and become a better Government than the one we have today.”

Shadow Minister for Finance Adrian Delia and Shadow Minister for the Economy, Technology and Strategic Projects Darren Carabott also addressed the event.

Adrian Delia said that four months ago, the Labour Party was painting a picture of Malta as the best country in the world. Today, we have a Prime Minister saying one thing and a Finance Minister saying something completely different.

A few months ago, we had an election and the Labour Party painted a picture of Malta as the best country in the world. Now, four months later, we have a different version of the Labour Party.

“How often have we heard that ‘With Labour, you know where you stand’? Today, we ask: ‘With which Labour? Robert Abela’s or Clyde Caruana’s?’”

Adrian Delia said this Government had based everything on an economic model that trapped us in a vicious circle dependent solely on population growth, leaving us overwhelmed, without electricity and stuck in traffic. He insisted that the Partit Nazzjonalista has long been putting forward solutions and that, under Alex Borg’s leadership, a Nationalist Government can give the country clear direction.

In his address, Darren Carabott said the Partit Nazzjonalista does not want to be a better Opposition, but a better Government. He said the meetings with social partners in recent weeks had been very positive and had confirmed that the Partit Nazzjonalista is moving in the right direction.

He referred to Clyde Caruana’s statement that this Budget is based on good decisions. “Where have these people been for the past thirteen years? Were they not the ones in Government?” Carabott asked.

He said the Partit Nazzjonalista can aspire to change and deliver it — a Malta with greater ambitions in technology, a Malta that gives young people renewed hope, a Malta with the transport system it deserves, and a Malta that safeguards its reputation. All this, Darren Carabott insisted, is possible. The Partit Nazzjonalista has already achieved a great deal in the past and can achieve even more in the years ahead.

At the start of the event, the PN Leader thanked all the Partit Nazzjonalista’s committees for their work, including the Ħaż-Żebbuġ committee, which hosted today’s event. He also thanked all those who had worked over the years to ensure that the Partit Nazzjonalista owns its clubs today without having stolen them from anyone.

25.10.2026