Opposition Leader Bernard Grech said Monday that a Nationalist government will obtain half of the €1 billion to be invested in the generation of 10 new economic sectors from public funds.

Addressing his first press conference of the 2022 election campaign, Grech said that the rest of the funds will come from loans from national and foreign institutions.

Grech gave a list of the economic niches which a new PN government will generate.

These include metaverse, due diligence, specialised manufacturing, 3D printing, AI applications, e-sports, production of video games, the sport industry, energy and social enterprises.

He said that some of these sectors have been mentioned by the Labour government, but this does not mean that they are functioning or functioning well.

He said that apart from this, a PN government would see that tax and social security contributions accumulated during the pandemic can be paid over a period of eight years.

Officers who finish their 25 years of service in disciplined corps may continue to be of service to their country, and will be given their pension even if they continue in their job.

The PN is also promising that the people will no longer be robbed by the government in the paying of taxes, with Grech saying that each person is having an average of €100 stolen by the government.

Asked about the energy sector, a sector which experienced several controversies over the years, Grech replied that the investment will certainly not see agreements behind the public’s back solely to make money.

He added that the aim is to optimize the energy sector in order to see newer and better job opportunities. “We want to attract small and mid-range businesses to invest in the sector, as with time the demand for energy will increase,” Grech said.

He added that with this, comes a responsibility to become more sustainable and reduce the impact on the environment.

Grech announced that there would be incentives for those who follow a career in sports, where a tax rate of 5% on the first €80,000 will be applicable.

The priority is to address from the beginning Malta’s grey listing position, as we aim to clean the country’s name and gain back Malta’s reputation, he said. Grech said that the PN will be responsible on how to manage public funds so the country can continue to grow and the public will have more opportunities. “We aim to fight the high costs of living so that you can live comfortably,” Grech said.

On the new economic sectors, there will be incentives on the hospitality sectors to increase the value of each economic sector proposed.

Half of the funds allocated for the new proposed sectors will be paid for by public funds, including deposits which have remained dormant in financial institutions, Grech said. The other half will be paid through investments by foreign and local institutions, he said. No capital gains tax will be paid on such investments, he added.

Grech said that these economic pillars will aim to attract mid-range as well as large businesses to the country, mentioning Google as an example, so that Malta can become a centre for these foreign companies. Through these sectors, the younger generation can further benefit and ultimatelt contribute to the country’s economy whilst working better paid and fulfilling jobs, Grech said.

“Thousands of jobs will be created through these sectors, where companies will compete to create more jobs and offer the best packages to the employee, and foreign workers will not be working in the shadows of the Maltese, with only aspirations to have better paid jobs. They too will benefit from these sectors,” Grech said, adding that the sectors will attract talent and investments.