Speaking at a discussion meeting in Mosta yesterday, Dr Attard Montalto said that the party does not need to lobby for the votes of staunch labourites because he knows that supporters of the MLP will always be loyal.

He made an appeal to those who have been “stabbed in the back” by the government to join the MLP in its quest to move Malta forward while safeguarding national interest.

Labour MP Leo Brincat also addressed yesterday’s meeting, saying that the Nationalist Party had been attacking Labour’s candidates because it feels threatened by them. They are good candidates, he said, who aim to tackle the real issues plaguing the island.

The condition of the Maltese worker is one of the main issues that is causing concern to the MLP, said party leader Alfred Sant during the meeting. “Instead of creating job opportunities, the government has been reducing work”, he said, citing the restructuring of PBS and the dockyards as examples.

Dr Sant went on to say that, if elected in the EP election, the Labour candidates aim to make the most of the advantages of EU membership while trying to compensate for the disadvantages of the arrangement.

He expressed his pleasure that the party has the support of European socialists to fight the problem of unemployment, not only in Malta, but in the whole continent.

The issue of unemployment runs deeper than the present situation, continued Dr Sant. The way in which a lack of jobs will affect future generations must be considered. This social side of the argument is an aspect he believes is most often ignored by conservative parties.

Workers’ Day celebrations are vital to keep the worker at the centre of the MLP’s agenda, said the party leader. They will show the worker that he is a pivotal point in the running of the country, since Malta’s work force forms the foundation of the island’s strength.

Dr Sant explained that EU membership has been the PN’s only concern for some time and the island’s problems, especially unemployment, have been seriously neglected. He went on to say that recently-elected Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi is simply repeating the propaganda of the previous Cabinet led by Dr Eddie Fenech Adami and does not seem to be aiming to make any significant changes for the better.

Labour MPs Michael Falzon, Noel Farrugia, Anglu Farrugia and Chris Cardona also addressed the meeting to voice their concerns and appeal to the public to vote Labour in the imminent EP election.