Manuel Mallia was addressing the activity 'Gvern li Jisma,' in St George's square Valletta, and not a single question relating to his former driver's shooting incident was asked.

The temporary tent was packed, and burst into a deafening thunderous flurry of applause when people greeted the minister with a standing ovation cheering 'Manuel' as he entered. Minister Mallia shook people's hands which led to a second round of loud boisterous cheering.

After taking his seat in front, the presenter announced that Minister Mallia will be speaking today which would then be followed by a question and answer period. This led the crowd to again stand up, clap, and cheer 'Manuel' once more.

"This is a budget that, unfortunately, following a certain incident (referring to the shooting incident), the opposition tried to lower its importance".

"I accepted the call of Dr muscat as I believe in him.  He is a dynamic and true person who will take this country far. I wanted to enter into this movement and I hope I have helped it along".

"The opposition is saying that we are taking the police back to the 80s and I remind them that I was with them back them and I will not do that".

The Minister spoke about the Citizenship scheme, saying that "We are currently attracting the best talent. After these people, through due diligence, applications are rigorously checked. The opposition says we are handing them out like pastizzi. Every application is properly vetted".

On the point of irregular migration, Malta only saw 300 land on Maltese shores. The Italians took over 100,000 immigrants through Mare Nostrum, he said.

"This is a vast Ministry, which includes the police, armed forces, security services, detention centres, correctional facility, the ID and citizenship departments, passports and PBS, falling within its remit".

He thanked all the workers in his departments, ending his speech and marking the beginning of question time.

A Forensic Laboratory

The Minister mentioned that he plans to create a National Forensic Laboratory. "How can we fight crime without it.  Recently through meetings I had with principle laboratories in Holland, they will help us to create one. He also said that we need forensic auditors.  Effectively the people investigating these people currently don't have the professional knowledge, such as the knowledge to read bank ledgers etc."

The wave of thefts in Sliema earlier this year was also discussed. "There was a wave of thefts in Sliema, and thus I held a meeting with the Sliema residents as well as the surrounding localities, in order to hear their stories, bringing high-end officers to listen in in order to decide how to tackle it. This concerned me as individuals work to have their property. I had to take action and today, thank god, it seems to have stopped".

"Police officers are used roughly 6000 times for feasts and 9,000 times in court a year, he said.

He spoke about PBS, stating that the Maltese and Gozitan people must be happy with the work they have done. He mentioned a production which resulted in millions of people world-wide seeing them.

Regarding the Civil Protection Department, he said that their equipment was old, yet today has been updated.

Discussing the Civil Protection Department, he argued that there were vehicles which had been there for over 20 years," and so we changed them. Today, I am informed that the first new fire engine arrived".

He mentioned the creation of a new fire station in Santa Venera and the new uniforms to replace the torn ones the CPD had previously.

"In addition, there is a lack of staff. The previous government were not hiring people and as such we are doing this". He again pledged that persons in the CPD would be able to be in a trade union if the trade union bill passes.

He turned to Identity Malta, and said that it has had a lot of success, saying that over 300 applications through the citizenship have been made.

"For years the people didn't have an id card due to a bad programme from the previous administration, yet today they have".

"Now on to the Malta Security Services. The opposition has been saying it heard people's telephone calls. The MSS is regulated by law and a monitoring monitors it which includes the leader of the opposition. This committee meets and in it everyone can ask the questions they need to ask.  Regarding procedure, he said that this is not the long arm of the police, but rather it is there to watch out for national security, to safeguard it.

"If there is a phone interception, then a justification report must be made, which then comes in front of me. Then I need to check that the warrant is secure and it must be signed with a time and date stamp. I assure you they are not listening in on everyone and when control needs to be made I assure you it is for the protection of the Maltese people.

One person gave him his support against the attacks made against the Minister, saying that some people seem to want his head on a platter, and continued to thank him for cleaning up the prisons. There were many years the prison was a cash and carry for drugs, you arrived and cleaned it up.

Cordin Correctional Facility

He was asked a few questions about the Cordin Correctional Facility, stating that the prison was found in a state of disarray. There were people who were working but, for example, the guard dogs were more like pets and the tuck shop costing more than a supermarket. "We introduced a music room, where one can even record a song. A room for the arts, a playroom for children to visit their family members in prison. A football team was introduced to take part in a competition, with an outside of prison team. A small factory allowing women to sew curtains and the like was made for the female prisoners who are paid. We are trying to show them that work is the right way rather than theft".

Regarding drugs in prison, we are investing in drug dogs that won't remain in the facility for them to end up as pets, as happened under the previous administration. Today, the staff is getting tested to ensure they are not abusing drugs. How can you be there to rehabilitate someone if you yourself are a victim.

"People who are in jail lose their freedom but not their dignity. We are working hard to ensure this rehabilitation takes place".

A member of the crowd recommended putting everyone up for parole, and as such the Minister said it could be discussed. He mentioned that the mechanism for parole sees if the application is valid or not. The committee of parole can see this assessment and decide if it will be granted or not. Under this, the first applications were granted and saw people let out on parole. There is a lot more that needs to be done on this point", he added.

He thanked the work the inmates themselves had done on the renovation of the facilities themselves. They young offenders were taken to a place in Imtahleb, where they have even more rehabilitation programmes.

The crowd applauded after every question asked and every answer given.

He also addressed the young Eurovision song contest saying he was pleased with the talent and the way the shipyard was turned into such a stage and venue, holding 4,200 people. Informed that this year around 80% more people watched it than normal. Most of these people come from countries that interest us in a touristic sense.

A question was raised regarding noise pollution. "I believe in balance, in a policy that one must abide by the law and objectively find a solution in order for others not to have their peace disturbed. Balance must also be found between residents and entertainment establishments," he said.