"It's the economy, stupid" may be one of the most famous political catchphrases in politics. First used during Bill Clinton's successful 1992 presidential campaign, the phrase is a reflection of the simple fact that for many voters the top priority is how they perceive the state of the economy to be.
This fact has been reflected time and time again in politics all across the globe, including in Malta. It's a line of thinking that is likely the primary reason as to why the Labour Party has managed to comfortably beat away one corruption scandal after another when it comes to the polls over the last decade or so.
Because people were economically happy, then they were comfortable to continue offering their support to the government of the day - scandal-ridden or not.
Yet now the scene has changed.
A deeply underwhelming mid-term performance in the June 2024 European elections coincided not just with the eruption of the Vitals scandal but also with high inflation. There were attempts to alleviate this through the Stabbilta initiative and the still ongoing energy subsidies, but these only went so far.
People started to feel the strain in their pockets, and the Labour Party's electoral performance is likely - in part - down to that.
Since then inflation has been curbed, but surveys are consistently showing that the cost of living remains at the forefront of people's minds.
A new Eurobarometer survey published this week found that inflation and the rising cost of living is the top concern for the Maltese public, both on a national level and a personal level.
There were parallels when people were asked what they felt the two most important issues facing the country were and what they felt the two most important issues facing them personally were.
In both categories, respondents pointed towards "rising prices / inflation / cost of living" as the most significant issue.
40% named this as one of the most important issues that the country is facing - up by five percentage points from last March and nine percentage points higher than the EU average.
61% meanwhile said that rising prices is one of the two most significant challenges that they are facing on a personal level - up by a staggering 16 percentage points when compared to last March, and 13 percentage points higher than the EU average.
What is of note here is that despite the government's efforts - and there has been some considerable effort - people are becoming more and more concerned about the cost of living.
We have a situation where the level of concern is higher than the European average by quite a margin - and where, perhaps more worryingly, it is only increasing. The increase in concern is also by a notable amount.
This means that people are feeling the squeeze - and it's a squeezing feeling that is only growing.
It's clear that the government must find ways to continue trying to alleviate these daily pressures, as right now what is being done does not appear to be enough.