The Nationalist Party slammed Finance Minister Edward Scicluna for praising the economic performance of Malta while utility bills, the price of petrol, the growing public sector workforce and the manufacturing industry each present pertinent challenges to today’s economy. 

In a press statement issued this afternoon, the PN questioned why government has remained “stubborn” and maintained the cost of water, electricity and petrol. It said that Malta’s prices are among the highest in Europe.

It also brought attention to the superficial increase in Malta’s GDP, saying that this has grown predominantly due to the increase in public sector employment. According to figures published in the third quarter of 2015, almost half of the increase recorded came from the public administration.

It added that, the only private sector to experience an increase in wages is the financial services sector.

It made reference to the International Monetary Fund’s report where it said that the rise in recurrent expenditure will make it difficult for the government to meet its financial goals. The IMF advised the government to freeze government wages in the coming years.

It concluded by criticising the unsustainable economic growth by saying that the government does not care about a strong economy for future generations.