Prime Minister Joseph Muscat told the electorate to ask themselves - 'who is more competent to lead, Joseph or Adrian,'  during the closing of the PL's Annual General Conference.

"Who has a vision for our children, Joseph or Delia? Who can offer solutions, Joseph or Delia?" Muscat asked.

During his speech, he spoke about his vision for Malta, and also said that in the coming days the government will reveal "the largest open space project for families in an entire generation."

"Malta comes first and foremost before anything else," Muscat said, as the crowd chanted his name. "Malta belongs to all of us, this is the best time for our country," he added, using the PL's past electoral slogans. "Malta is in our hearts."

He said that the PL works with all their might to help the country grow stronger, to enact social justice, to achieve equality and promote social mobility. He said that "Malta in our hearts is something we feel and defend every day."

Whoever joins the movement, he said, knows that the PL loves the country not only if they are in government, but at all times. "We know what the past six years meant for the country. Today, we take many things for granted, and everyone is feeling the economic success that has been generated," he said mentioning pension rises, no new taxes and other policies. "Today, the truth is that everyone who wants to work, can work."

When implementing policies, Muscat said, the government looks at peoples' quality of life, not the amount it costs to implement such decisions.

For the third consecutive year, Malta had a financial surplus, he said. "We do all this and we still earn more funds than we spend. We will not leave a debt for our children to pay."

"When we say that Malta in our hearts we mean that the Maltese and Gozitan people are in our hearts."

"Six years ago we embarked on a transformation of this country, and this will continue," he said.

The Prime Minister said that the government must never close their eyes to the problems that people go through. "We do not have a magic solution for every problem, but we are honest."

He said that those moving forward will face new challenges, and said that "our work will not stop. Together we still have a lot to do as a party, as a movement and as a country."

"I see challenges as part of our vision. I knew that if we took the road to economic growth and not austerity, that there would be challenges."

He spoke of infrastructure, innovation and inclusion as three such challenges.

"Infrastructure is not just our roads, but is also the cleanliness of the country, is also social infrastructure like elderly homes, is also legal infrastructure which include constitutional reforms, is also digital and communications infrastructure, and is also environmental infrastructure." He spoke of the need to provide more open spaces for families.

"Progress has its consequences, but as I said before, I prefer these consequences to the consequences of a stagnant economy. We have ideas and solutions, while the others offer nothing."

Speaking about road infrastructure, he mentioned the plan to rebuild all roads in the country in seven years.  "We started this project and they will all be done within that time-period." He said that the work being conducted is quality work, and not just patchwork, so that these roads will serve for 20-25 years.

Muscat also spoke about the quality of time spent with families. "We want more time with our families, and want to spend it in more open areas. We understand this and need to provide for this."

He spoke about some localities being the example of cleanliness, highlighting Valletta, saying that he wants this model to be used in all localities.

On open spaces, he mentioned projects conducted by the government on a number of already existing parks, "but this is not enough. Over the past months we have been working on a new project. In the coming days we will announce a large project to convert a zone which will become the largest open space for families in the country. "The largest open space project for families in an entire generation."

He spoke about wanting to improve air quality. He said that the government wants to encourage people to buy hybrid or electric vehicles, and mentioned more initiatives to keep charges for people charging their vehicles at home low.

Muscat spoke about sport, and spoke of government's strategy, requiring a full system that incentivises sport, different sports discipline, with clear targets and key performance indicators. "A winners' attitude, as this is a country of winners."

He said that our children are just as good as children in other countries.

He said that the Strategy for Sport will help sports groups with clear plans. Muscat said that the Maltese have the potential to be the most innovative in the world. "We have no natural resources, and we have always been innovative, creating economic niches that nobody believed could be so beneficial."

Turning to unemployment, he said that one person without work could mean a family in poverty. "This is the workers party, and we believe that work is the key to combat poverty."

 He spoke of the need to prepare youths for tomorrow's jobs through education, such as on blockchain, and Artificial Intelligence. Today's skills will not be enough for tomorrow's factories, he said.

Muscat said that the international companies coming locally cannot find Maltese workers to expand, even though they are offering good wages. "We need Maltese workers and foreign workers. I would prefer that a company remain working in Malta, bringing in foreign workers needed to expand, than closing its doors and moving to a different country because it cannot find enough workers."

 He said that Malta's economy is not based on one sector, but is spread over a number of sectors.  "No single sector dominates, so if something happens to one sector, the economy won't collapse."

He said that the PL believes in inclusion. Where others see problems, we see opportunities. He said that government needs to address the worries of the people, and security is a prerequisite of success. He said that those not keeping up with the pace of society, find the government there to help them stand up.

Turning to property, he said that 80% own their own homes. He said that if the value of property rose, then they benefitted. The other side of the coin is that those who want to rent or buy saw prices rise. "We know there are people struggling as some owners are raising rent prices quite a bit." He said that soon the government will have an affordable housing project that will create stability in the property market.

He spoke of closing the gender wage gap, saying that it is not acceptable for a woman to be paid less for doing the same job a man does.

"Elections come and go, politicians come and go, but if they offer a long term plan, then the people could make a serene decision based on competence."