Prime Minister Robert Abela is continuing to keep his cards close to his chest when it comes to the date of this year’s general election.

Asked by journalists outside Castille what his comments were over rumours swirling that Malta will go to the polls on 12 March, Abela, with a wry smile on his face, simply replied “By June the election will have happened for sure.”

Speculation has long been rife about the date of the upcoming general election, with Abela’s legislature running till June 2022 – five years on from the Labour Party’s rampant victory in 2017.

Abela can, in theory, stretch the legislature to as late as September, however rumours have been rife that it the election is more likely to happen in March this year.

These rumours gained momentum this week when reports emerged that the Pope had scheduled his planned visit, which has had to be moved more than once due to the Covid-19 pandemic, for the 2 April.