Opposition Leader Bernard Grech said that his work in the party is not finished and there is still a difficult journey ahead.

He asked for a strong mandate from the general council, "to take hard and courageous decisions together."  

The PN lost the general election this year by a landslide margin. Grech is the sole contender for the party's leadership and will only need a majority vote among party councillors to be confirmed as the party's leader.

In an interview on NET news on Sunday, Grech said "this is not an easy time for the party we cherish so much."

Grech said that when he decided to step up for leadership, he was aware that it would be a difficult road.

"In the year and a half that I have been the leader of this party, I have learned and cherished the dedication, the love that many people have for the PN." At such a difficult time, he was convinced in regaining confidence in the party leadership.

Grech explained that now that the general election has passed, the PN's priorities are different but remain urgent. He reiterated that this is the time for decisions to be taken.

"We cannot keep sweeping the problems under the rug, as not only do they not get solved, but they continue to grow and ultimately hinder us from moving forward," Grech said.

He spoke about the party's financial problems, mentioning how the financial issue is at the heart of every other problem being faced by the Nationalist party. "This is the biggest challenge the PN is facing right now," said Grech.

On the party's parliamentary work, Grech promised that the PN will participate in political debates and will take hard decisions when needed. He added that the PN will be the harsh Opposition the country needs, keeping the government in check as well as working alongside it.

Grech said that other urgent decisions needed are those related to the reorganization of the party, including reforms on operations within the PN.

"After an internal process that regenerated many of the internal posts, the last election gave us a new parliamentary group through a democratic choice by the people," he said.

He said that the party needs to move forward in its structures in a way which suits a modern and effective PN, to ensure the discipline and behaviour of all members of the party.