Next year will be an exceptional one for Malta, Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi confidently predicted yesterday.
Speaking in Fgura, Dr Gonzi said that as from next month, tenders will be published for a number of major projects that will be funded from the e855 million allocated to Malta in the EU budget for 2007-2013.
Last Thursday, the European Commission announced that Malta’s proposed projects had been approved.
“Of the 25 member states, Malta is the first to have its programme approved. This is great news for us and the decision means that we can get on with our plans,” said Dr Gonzi.
The government would, he said, be fulfilling its promise to use the funds wisely to improve the quality of knowledge and education in Malta, the quality of life, the environment and to invest in human capital and resources.
The Prime Minister said that in 2007, Malta will also have reached the
standards required to enter the eurozone.
Turning to the economy, Dr Gonzi said that no matter what Labour Party leader Dr Alfred Sant was saying, the facts speak for themselves.
“Dr Sant and his party are saying that everything is going wrong, but all their stories are just bubbles waiting to burst. And the facts are bursting each and every one of them,” said Dr Gonzi.
He pointed out that HSBC could have gone anywhere in the world but they chose to set up a call centre in Malta. Lufthansa Teknik is investing a huge amount of money to boost its operations here and create up to 500 more jobs for Maltese engineers.
“They could have gone somewhere else. So who is right? Alfred Sant or Lufthansa Teknik? De La Rue have invested locally to be able to produce biometric passports. Negotiations on Smart City are nearly closed. This government is serious and it is helping to create political, social and economic stability,” the Prime Minister added.
He admitted that there are still areas that need to be addressed, such as the fisheries sector, farming and the creation of jobs for certain groups.
“However, things are looking good for this country. In the first 10 months of this year, imports increased by 14 per cent over last year. Factories bought more raw material because they know they have the orders.
“At the same time, exports in the first 10 months have also increased by 14 per cent over last year and investment in the manufacturing sector has increased by 30 per cent over last year. These are signs of a growing economy and a country that is on the right track,” the Prime Minister insisted.
Justice and Home Affairs Minister Tonio Borg said the Labour Party was coming up with a lot of accusations against the government because they had found it nearly impossible to criticise the budget that had been presented.
Dr Borg said that when he reads the opposition media he thinks he is living in another country.
“I think this is quite positive, because the more they say that we have hit rock bottom, the more the country starts to move forward,” he said.
He insisted that certain facts cannot be changed.
“When we look at foreign direct investment, we are sixth in Europe and eighth worldwide. These are not figures we produce, and we certainly don’t have the resources to buy all the world’s experts. Of course there are problems; if there weren’t, you would not need a
government,” said Dr Borg.
Nationalist Party secretary-general Joe Saliba said 2006 had been a great year for Malta and the budget presented by the government was proof that the country had bene-fited financially, socially and politically.
Looking ahead to 2007, Mr Saliba said the Maltese would start to benefit even more next year.
“Some people may say that this will be election year. However, the government has worked hard and very carefully to do what is best for the country and at the right time.”
He criticised the Labour Party for constantly trying to tarnish the image of the PN and the government.