The Labour party is a government which believes in a policy of wealth and prosperity, rather than austerity – an attitude adopted by the Nationalist Party, Labour Whip Glenn Bedingfield said on Saturday.

During a press conference which was held at the Tritons Fountain in Valletta, the Labour Party sought to explain to the public that the nature and politics of the Labour Party is that of prosperity, rather than austerity.

Bedingfield was making reference to the recent initiative that was announced by the government where a total of around €70 million will be injected into the economy, in the form of cash cheques and tax refunds.

He spoke about the Opposition’s reaction towards such an initiative, saying that the Nationalist Party is one that keeps taking the country backwards, rather than pushing it forward.

“The PN has been and is still run by the same people and the same thoughts. While we are a party who believes in wealth and prosperity, the Nationalist Party believes in austerity. The PN took decisions that violated the middle-cass by imposing taxes and burdens on people,” Bedingfield said.

He highlighted the criticism and attacks that were exhibited, specifically noting that the Nationalist Party had said that this type of measure was like “reheating soup.” 

Meanwhile, PL MP Jonathan Attard said that the Nationalist Party’s arguments goes to show that they are still in a mentality which takes Malta back to how it was in 2013.

Attard presented a list of how much people will receive in tax funds.

For her part, PL candidate Naomi Cachia said that this government has the credibility to run Malta’s economy, and this was something that was noted by the European Commision.

“The Maltese economy is expected to grow by 6% - one and a half times the growth rate of the European economy,” Cachia said.

To put things into context, Cachia also highlighted that the “Commission’s report indicates that during 2008 – 2012, economic growth in Malta stood at 2.5%. This is a figure well below half of what we have today and this is all due to the measures and decisions which were made by this government.”