Following the publication of information regarding a strong rise in economic optimism by Maltese and Gozitan businesses and consumers by the European Commission, Eurostat released statistics that confirms Malta’s success, the government said.

For eight consecutive months, the rate of unemployment across the Maltese islands has decreased, resulting in Malta having the lowest unemployment rate it has ever had since Eurostat began publishing this information in 2000.

In June, the rate of unemployment in Malta stood at 5.6 percent,  A figure which contrasts the 6.3 percent unemployment rate Malta had in the last month of the previous administration, as well as the average rate of 6.9 percent that Malta had since the beginning of 2000 to March 2013, the government argued.

“The Eurostat figures show that since the Labour Party came into government, the number of people looking for work reduced by nearly 2000 people, or 17 percent. In contrast, under the previous administration, unemployment had risen by the same amount,” the government said.

The statistics also indicate that Malta, in June, had the third lowest unemployment rate in Europe after Germany and Austria, the government added.

“The results of Eurostat negate recent forecasts by the Opposition that the country is facing a crisis in the work place, and that unemployment will rise to record levels. The fact that our country today has the lowest unemployment rate since it began collecting such statistics confirms the Government's work to be among the best countries in Europe,” the government concluded.