Prime Minister Robert Abela and Opposition leader Alex Borg on Monday both defended their parties' family-friendly proposals and insisted their election measures are financially sustainable, but were quick to point fingers at each other when asked whether the campaign has become a contest of who can promise the most.

While Abela accused the Nationalist Party of engaging in "auction politics" by attempting to outbid Labour on major proposals, Borg argued that every PN measure announced so far had been carefully costed and backed by realistic plans to generate additional revenue.

Replying to the same two questions by The Malta Independent at their Monday morning political events, both leaders acknowledged the need to address wider national issues such as overpopulation, the environment and governance, while also insisting that new leave and parental support measures should not unfairly burden employers in the private sector.

The two questions were related to the way the PL and PL are coming up daily with a long list of measures and promises they will implement if elected, rather than focus on main challenges such as over-population and institutional shortcomings, and whether their family-friendly measures would negatively affect the private sector

In his answers, Prime Minister Robert Abela said that his Labour Party is not and will not compete in "auction politics." He added that it is evident to see who is participating in this kind of politics - where a party makes grand pledges to outdo another - and who isn't.

"The Labour Party will not compete in auction politics because we believe that our people don't believe in it," the Prime Minister said.

If one had to analyse the proposals made by both major political parties, it is "evident" that the Nationalist Party has so far carried out its election campaign by simply trying to out-pledge the Labour Party, Abela said.

He noted that after the PL announced its 100 measures planned for the island of Gozo, the PN emerged with 110 dedicated measures. Abela also recalled that similarly, after his PL announced the €1,000 super bonus for those in the workforce, the PN first responded by having some of its representatives state on party media that this proposal cannot be implemented, before then announcing its own "rebate guarantee" worth €1,200 to all workers just 48 hours later.

The Prime Minister remarked that the true test - to decide who has the credibility and competence to implement measures without negatively impacting Malta's national debt or finances - will be on election day, on Saturday, 30 May.

"The difference between those who spray proposals every morning and those with well-costed proposals that fall in line with fiscal targets set by the European Commission will show then," the Prime Minister said.

Abela continued that the PL has clear targets to keep reducing Malta's budget deficit, as well as to ensure that it remains below the 3% threshold stipulated by the excessive budget deficit procedure imposed onto the country by the European Union two years ago. He added that under his administration, international bodies like the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have been impressed with the way Malta is handling its fiscal situation.

He continued that if the Labour Party had to participate in auction politics, then it would risk, should it be re-elected for a fourth consecutive term, getting the annual budget rejected by the European Commission for not being compliant to reaching stipulated fiscal targets. He said that this would result in going back to the drawing board to revise the annual budget "as we saw happen in the past."

PM Abela went over several accomplishments throughout this past legislature, such as the opening of new parks and improving air quality through the shore-to-ship initiative. He said that its accomplishments can serve as a certificate of trust that it will continue taking action over the coming years as well.

Regarding overpopulation concerns, he referenced the Labour Migration Policy and the regulation of temp agencies as measures that his administration has fulfilled to show that "the only foreign workers entering the country are those looking to work responsibly."

"Numerous employers have challenges when employing certain people in the country," PM Abela said, "we need enough workers in the country without restricting infrastructure."

When asked whether providing increased leave to promote more family time could create barriers of entry to employment for people, and women in particular, in the private sector, the Prime Minister dismissed this rationale.

He said that through these kinds of measures - such as offering more workplace flexibility through flexitime, remote working, and increased maternal and paternal leave - productivity in the workplace will increase, to the country's benefit. He stated that his government would continue to provide incentives to offer families more flexibility.

For his part, PN leader Alex Borg said the PN had been careful to ensure that every proposal announced so far was financially sustainable and based on realistic calculations. "The difference between us and others during this campaign is that before announcing proposals, we made sure to see where the country will generate additional revenue in order to offset these measures," he said.

Borg added that the PN intended to continue speaking about wider national challenges in the coming days, including overpopulation, construction, governance and the environment. "Within the coming days we will be speaking about topics such as overpopulation and construction. We are discussing different topics step by step and these discussions will continue," he said.

He also rejected suggestions that the PN was simply offering "freebies" during the campaign, insisting that the party's proposals were based on long-term planning rather than short-term political gain.

In his reply regarding the question on family-friendly measures, Borg said the PN was conscious of the realities faced by employers and insisted that any new benefits introduced for workers would be balanced with support measures for businesses. "This pressure will not be placed on companies alone," he said. "This is a reality that many families are already facing, but that does not mean we should not provide support."

He added that the party's approach was aimed at protecting both employees and employers. "When we offer benefits to workers, we also counterbalance them with measures for workplaces in order to make sure neither side struggles," Borg said.