Election Desk: Show me the money (or don’t?)

Welcome to the Election Desk. This is where we round up the major headlines of the last 24 hours, together with some of the more light-hearted and funnier sides of the campaign trail.

Labour doesn’t provide the receipt

Labour’s 263-page, 1,000-point manifesto promises plenty: tax breaks, a €1,000 “super bonus” ofr every worker, and continued energy subsidies. It’s an ambitious shopping list – but how much does it cost?

Finance Minister Clyde Caruana isn’t saying. When asked directly at a Labour press conference on Thursday, he sidestepped the question and said the costings have already been factored into deficit and debt projections. What he really means is that they did the maths but don’t want to show us the method.

However, he did say that Malta is on track to eliminate its budget deficit by 2029, reduce debt below 40% of GDP by 2030, and emerge from the EU’s excessive deficit procedure. He said these are the lowest debt levels recorded since the mid-1990s.

Caruana also downplayed concerns that the government’s controversial tax settlement law, which has seen several high-profile money laundering cases collapse, could land Malta back on the FATF grey list.

Not in my bay

Apart from questions on cost, the Labour manifesto is also generating objections from local councils.

Marsaxlokk’s council has pushed back against plans to build a new Aquatic Resources Malta facility near the Port Ruman residential area. The proposed building would house ARM offices, a fish hatchery and species research facilities on a site where the council already has planning permission for a public garden and jogging track.

The council’s position is straightforward: residents want a green space, not a hatchery. It’s warning that the building would create a new eyesore in the area. Not a good look for the party promising a cleaner, greener Malta.

However, the council did agree that aquaculture operations should move out of Fort San Luċjan, but it does not think it should more into the heart of a residential area.

The council said the building proposed in the manifesto would house ARM offices, as well as a fish hatchery and species research facilities. Photo: Matthew Mirabelli

No driver? No problem

Momentum is thinking very long-term on transport. The party unveiled a three-phase, €842 million plan on Thursday that starts with subsidised shared cab rides and ends with a fleet of driverless autonomous vehicles by 2040. The party claims its plan is 72% cheaper than what either Labour or the PN are proposing, and it can start almost immediately because it uses exisitng infrastructure, namely cab apps and existing fleets.

The short-term centrepiece is the Subsidised Shared Cab Initiative, which would use AI to group commuters heading the same way into one vehicle. Youths and the eldery would pay €2 per trip, while every else splits the standard fare.

Phase two, which would run till 2033, would introduce 2,000 electric 12-passenger minivans per year with the aim of cutting Malta’s car fleet from 447,000 vehicles to around 200,000, back to 2005 levels.

In phase three, the fleet will  be swapped entirely for autonomous vehicles.

Momentum says this was designed by engineer and hydrologist Marco Cremona. The party also pointed out that driverless taxis are already operating commercially in several US cities and at scale in China.

Not a motorist? Momentum is also promising to fix the pavements. That would cost €100,000.

Momentum presenting its transport plans. Photo: Momentum