Faith is taking the first step, even when you do not see the whole staircase - Martin Luther King Jr.

That is exactly what we do when we vote in a new government, or oust an old one. We are provided with a vision, a picture, a hope, and we decide to give it a shot. We think through our decision (or let others think for us), we debate within ourselves and with others, but ultimately we decide and just hope for the best. When things go well we congratulate ourselves on our boundless intelligence. When things go awry we make excuses, defend our intelligent choices, do everything in our power to convince ourselves that we have become too demanding, then start questioning our own sanity in that order. Finally, we acknowledge our gullibility, our stupidity, get on with our life regardless, and hope that it's just a passing phase and that there has to be light at the end of the tunnel.

This evening, we will listen to another budget speech, recited by a very capable Finance Minister who instils faith and confidence even by his reassuring, composed demeanour. Under his watch our economy has grown and the general outlook for the future is positive. In my mind I have no questions regarding Minister Scicluna's ability to make the best of whatever national assets he has to manage, financial or otherwise.

What I do question is how the rest of the administration is going to let Minister Scicluna's work bear fruit.

Any economic growth has to be sustainable, not only in financial terms, but also environmental and social terms.

To start with, I have to say that whatever business plan is unveiled tonight has to be backed up by detailed information regarding the unfolding of the Energy Plan, including timeframes. The financial implications of the execution or otherwise of the Energy Roadmap cannot be ignored.

Therefore tonight many people expect to be given an explanation of where we are on this matter if we are to take this Budget seriously.

According to international statistics the ease to do business in Malta has gone from bad to worse. If we intend to create productive jobs in the private sector, this issue has to be addressed thoroughly and effectively. SMEs are crucial to sustaining our economy and should be encouraged to start up and nurtured to flourish. This second Labour Budget needs to take this issue seriously. Real co-ordination between government systems and departments has to be in place if we are to start cutting down on productivitydestroying bureaucracy.

Then there is our competitiveness, which has also deteriorated in recent years. How do the reduced domestic energy tariffs and upcoming reduced utility tariffs for industry compare with current tariffs in EU28, and other competitors, within the new reality created by the massive oil slump? What about fuel prices? If we have such good rates as is being cited by the government why are we losing on our competitiveness rankings?

Then there is the issue of precarious work and total disregard for worker's rights. I'm all for workers' responsibility and productivity as well as rights, don't get me wrong, but shouldn't abuses be curtailed? When are they going to be curtailed?

Then there is the issue of the ever increasing families subsisting under or just on the poverty line.

Without direct, monitored financial and other help, some families, especially women and children, don't stand a chance of making the leap into sustainable living. Just throwing money at this social scourge will not take it away. Ongoing professional support and formation or reformation is equally important. I hope this budget will acknowledge the fact that a one size fits all solution to the tragedy of poverty is doomed to failure. Causes of poverty are complex and numerous and solutions will succeed if the poor are treated holistically as humans, as families, and not as a statistic.

In this context, but not to the exclusion of other contexts, I have to state that employment in the public sector, which seems to be a much debated issue, can be beneficial if the jobs dished out are productive jobs. Investing in social workers, more PSD teachers in schools, and more healthcare professionals to cite but a very few examples, for instance, might be costly to the public purse in the immediate term but can bear significant fruit in the longer term.

These were just a few of the thoughts jostling each other in the corridors of my brain in anticipation of this evening's revelation. In the meantime I can only hope that this time next year I will be saying what a fantastic life changing budget 2015 had proved to be.