The Prime Minister defended his no-show to the leaders' debate organised by Il-Każin, in collaboration with Times of Malta, on Monday evening where he was supposed to go one-on-one against PN leader Alex Borg.

He said that with a dialogue with athletes and sportspersons already scheduled at the same time, "it wouldn't have been right" to cancel this party activity so that he could attend this live debate.

While responding to journalists on Tuesday afternoon, Prime Minister Robert Abela said why he did not appear on Monday evening's debate-turned-interview with Alex Borg.

He said that earlier on Monday morning, he and Borg went head-to-head in a debate organised by the Malta Chamber of Commerce. Abela said that this was the fourth debate of this campaign and that on Wednesday, tomorrow, a fifth debate between him and Opposition leader Borg will be organised - this time by the Broadcasting Authority.

The Prime Minister said that his responses during the Malta Chamber debate were "crystal clear" and that this campaign has been filled with debates and many meetings with the people.

PM Abela said that later on Monday, he met with residents from Luqa and Żabbar, before going to a scheduled "dialogue" with athletes and sportspersons, including Special Olympics representatives.

He stated that with this PL activity featuring Special Olympics athletes having already been scheduled, he felt that "it wouldn't have been right" to cancel this so that he could attend the debate.

When told by a journalist from NET News that if he wanted to attend the live debate, he could have moved the party activity to another date, Abela did not acknowledge this possibility in his response. His interaction with the NET journalist turned into a quick back-and-forth before he reiterated that he will be present for the Broadcasting Authority's debate on Wednesday at noon.

PM Abela added that his government has done "so much work" to give "full dignity" to Special Olympics athletes who represent Malta, as well as invest in the sports sector. Mentioning some pledges the Labour Party plans on implementing for this field if it is re-elected, Abela listed the creation of sports leave, more sports facilities and infrastructure, the creation of a "one-stop shop" to help athletes flying abroad, and a promise for government to pay for an administrator to assist sports associations to reduce their financial burden.

'Absolutely not,' Prime Minister states that we won't see another PL metro proposal shelved

PM Abela stated that the Maltese islands will "absolutely not" see another metro proposal pitched by the Labour Party put on the shelf due to financial feasibility concerns, as what happened to the initial proposal put forward just prior to the 2022 general election.

The Prime Minister was asked whether there is a possibility that the fate of the PL government's initial metro plan repeats itself, since Finance Minister Clyde Caruana said publicly that he will not sign off on a metro project if its financial numbers do not make sense.

In response, Abela praised Caruana, saying that the government is privileged to have him as the country's Minister for Finance.

Here, he criticised Caruana's PN counterpart, the Nationalist Party's Shadow Minister for Finance, Adrian Delia, for saying that he will sign off on "whatever [PN] project is in front of him," despite the fact that some studies still need to be done.

When told that the government's metro proposal also requires studies to be done before works can start, the Prime Minister condemned how the Nationalist Party, on its own metro proposal, "got the budget wrong by €900 million, almost a billion euros," while still being in initial planning stages.

After discussing how discussions transpired with consultants Arup Group so far, i.e., that government requested it to go back to the drawing board to pitch a metro proposal that is "more viable" and financially sustainable for the country, instead of the originally fully underground plans that would have cost €6 billion, Abela stressed that it is crucial for the country to get this metro done right.

"This is a project that if the country gets it wrong, it will ruin its finances and the people will suffer," Prime Minister Abela said on the metro project.

He said that the metro timeline, within the PL's Malta in Motion strategy, of 15 years is "a credible, realistic timeline that is honest and authentic to our people." PM Abela added that he is not ready to simply tell the people that it won't take as long as needed.

He also said that when it comes to his government's plans to incentivise public transport use, the Labour Party is against policies that "penalise" people, such as adding disincentivising taxes or additional payments to deter private car use.

Marsaxlokk aquaculture research centre won't go ahead without residents' convergence, PM says

The Prime Minister stated that Pledge 58 in Chapter 19 of the PL's "Int Malta" electoral manifesto for an Aquaculture and Fisheries Research Centre in Marsaxlokk will not commence without "consultation and convergence" with the locality's residents.

Abela made these comments on Tuesday nearly a week since the Marsaxlokk local council, which holds a PL majority, came out against this "eyesore" PL pledge. On 20 May, the Marsaxlokk local council stated that the site for this research centre is slated for a plot of land within the town that has already been earmarked by the Marsaxlokk Local Council for a public garden and a jogging track to be developed. It added that it had already received permits for this garden to be constructed.

PM Abela assured Marsaxlokk residents that "nothing will happen without their convergence" and that "[they] know where they stand with me."

When asked why this pledge was made without first consulting Marsaxlokk residents, Abela called for them not to worry. Here, he cited how his government recently helped return Manoel Island to the public, despite its long-term concession contract.

He also dismissed concerns that services from the Grand Harbour will be sent to Marsaxlokk as well so that the government can proceed with its regeneration of the Grand Harbour, saying that this "was never a thought" and that it "is not true at all."