“We will be receiving this help because we worked for it, prepared reports and presented our plans,” he said while speaking during a social activity held in Rabat on Monday evening.

Dr Gonzi said that the Nationalist Party does not rest on its laurels but always worked harder for the benefit of the people. The PN always showed the way forward and will always seek to renew the country.

The Prime Minister recalled that, since its inception, the PN was a protagonist in the development of Malta. He mentioned Malta’s Independence in 1964, saying it led to the beginning and later expansion of the tourism industry, as well as the coming over of foreign investment.

“Today, nobody says that Malta’s Independence was a mistake, but at the time the Malta Labour Party wanted integration with Britain,” Dr Gonzi said.

The people had once again needed the PN for democracy to be restored in 1987, and in the years that followed Malta developed into a modern country. Infrastructural projects were undertaken and social services became more

personalised, he said.

The next step was Malta’s membership in the European Union, with Malta joining in May after years of negotiations.

Today, works on arterial roads were being carried out thanks to a protocol with Italy and, when they are ready, the EU will provide funds for other road works to be carried out. Other developments were taking place in the social, economic and employment sectors, Dr Gonzi said.

Dr Gonzi later presented a memento to Alfred Bonnici, Alex Cachia Zammit and Philip Saliba, who were all members of parliament in 1964, when Malta obtained Independence.