Opposition Leader Bernard Grech said on Tuesday that a new Nationalist government would promote and invest in the Maltese language, culture, arts and crafts sectors in every possible way. 

During a PN political event organised in Żejtun, Grech highlighted a number of proposals put forth by the PN in its manifesto for the 2022 general election.

Grech stressed that if people place their trust in him on 26 March, he will "be an ambassador of the Maltese identity."

"We must show how proud we are to be Maltese. This should be done by pushing forward the Maltese product and the Maltese identity in every possible way, both in Malta as well as abroad," Grech said.

Grech said that a new Nationalist government would commit to removing the "disproportionate burdens that the Labour government has placed on voluntary organisations."

"This would be done by primarily reducing bureaucracy on the administrative operation of organisations," Grech said.

He added that "we can no longer have a one size fits all situation. Thus, the PN would seek to invest and reduce the burdens. A programme of support for voluntary organisations would be launched to promote handicrafts, local traditions and special interests to ensure long-term conservation and sustainability."

When speaking about the Maltese language and its importance, Grech said that in order to embrace the value of the Maltese language, the PN in government would set up a 'Dar tal-Malti.'

This would bring together writers, authors, representative bodies as well as the private sector and would serve as a key aspect to promote and incentivise the use of the Maltese language both in Malta and abroad.

Grech placed a lot of emphasises on the arts sector, saying that as a testament to how important this sector is for the PN, a number of proposals have been put forth in the electoral campaign, including one proposal regarding the 5% tax rate on the first €80,000 of income for all people registered as professional artists in various fields.

Prior to Grech's speech, a number of PN candidates spoke during the event including John Baptist Camilleri, Janice Chetcuti, Errol Cutajar, Carm Mifsud Bonnici, Mary Muscat, Leon Scibberas and Stephen Spiteri.