Prime Minister Joseph Muscat called the 2019 budget one that gives, and doesn’t take.

Addressing the press outside Castille, right after the Finance Minister delivered his budget speech in Parliament, the Prime Minister repeated a flurry of measures to help different sectors of society, while also speaking about a few which were not mentioned Finance Minister Edward Scicluna’s speech.

Some of these initiatives revolve around the removal of discrimination for persons who were employed with a government entity, or a company in which government had over a 50% stake and took an early retirement scheme before 1 January 2008. Their pension was not increasing, and this anomaly will be fixed.

The government, he said, will also improve the in-work benefit, where rates will increase by €50 to €100 for every child a person has when entering the workforce.  He also said that an anomaly regarding the pensions of persons who were subject to an agreement with Libya will see their social benefits improved after an anomaly was found.

Asked by this newsroom about the substantial increases in recurrent expenditure, the Prime Minister, as well as the Finance Minister, explained that these were due to collective agreements with different sectors, with government employees, nurses, doctors, teachers and others, highlighting that there were persons who needed to have their conditions improved for many years.

The Prime Minister said that government had to employ more professionals, LSEs, people to care for the elderly, employees at St Vincent de Paule, and in other areas.

Finance Minister Edward Scicluna highlighted that the government has been making a surplus year-on-year.

Deputy Prime Minister Chris Fearne mentioned that there was a time under the PN administration where ministers were asked to give money back due to the excessive deficit procedure and that instead today, he would go to the finance minister for more funds for medicines and they would agree. He said that it is good to increase wages.

Asked about the €100 million earmarked for road infrastructure, and only €1 million for green areas and urban areas, and why the ratio was so one-sided, the Prime Minister said that the €1 million is for a pilot project, and at that is a substantial amount for a pilot project.  He said that a pilot project having such a substantial amount indicates that if it is a success, it will have a good budget increase.

Finance Minister Edward Scicluna highlighted that the €100 million for road infrastructure does not exclude embellishment of the areas.