Academics and political figures largely share the same sentiment about the Labour Party in government: the past 10 years were very good for business, economic growth, employment and liberal laws, among others, but bad for the environment, ethical leadership and good governance.

When Joseph Muscat swept to power in March 2013, he promised change and a new way of doing politics. From day one, his party wanted to leave its mark after 25 years of Nationalist rule, interrupted only by 18 months of Alfred Sant’s government.

Muscat drove his progressive agenda forward, winning a new wave of support, and his government’s pro-business approach showed this would be a different Labour regime. EU membership was no longer an issue, and Labour even championed certain policies driven by its predecessors.

But it was not long until the controversies and scandals started clogging the news headlines. Laws were tweaked to facilitate building permits, the money flowed, and the face of Malta was forever changed, with thousands of new buildings and the importation of (cheap) labour ballooning the island’s population.

Joseph Muscat soaks in the Labour crowd following the party's return to power in the 2013 general election. Photo: Darrin Zammit Lupi

The recipe appears to have worked, as Labour secured unprecedented majorities of more than 35,000 votes over the PN in three successive elections.

Political analyst and public policy lecturer George Vital Zammit said the last 10 years were particularly significant and impactful because the Labour Party not only managed to consolidate itself as the default party of the majority, but it also almost completely transformed its policies – morphing from a conservative party that objected to Malta’s accession in the EU, to becoming the most liberal and progressive government in history.

Before 2013, the chances of the Labour Party being able to pull off this radical shift was unthinkable for many, he said. Labour managed to garner support in many previously alien niches, such as businesses and the younger, more liberal generation – niches the PN has to find a way to get back if it intends to take on the PL effectively in the next election, Zammit said.

The man who engineered it all – Joseph Muscat – said the PN had lost its way and had brought the country to a halt.

“A sense of helplessness and resignation underscored their position at every turn: energy prices could not be reduced, gay people could only be allowed to live like ‘brothers’, job creation had peaked and could not be improved, a fiscal deficit was unavoidable, a budget needed to be synonymous with taxes, broken marriages had to be taken to the grave, to name but a few,” Muscat told Times of Malta.

The former prime minister, who resigned in the wake of Daphne Caruana Galizia’s murder scandal in January 2020, said people were so used to the inertia and living in political limbo, that they had to change gear to bring about fundamental economic, social, cultural and political change.

Joseph Muscat appeared invincible. Photo: Matthew Mirabelli

‘Economic success not without a price’

But it was not without a price. The economy could only grow the way it did because government deregulated the building sector and allowed largely unbridled construction, Zammit said, and the GDP could only grow because the population grew.

“We are also witnessing artificial growth. We continue to issue permits for projects the country does not need. Do we really need another supermarket? Shouldn’t we rather build a school?” Zammit said.

Good governance remains Labour’s Achilles’ heel, Zammit insisted. “Good governance is not simply lacking, but the government actively views it as an obstacle. I cannot help not notice that Labour feels like governing ethi­cally is a burden preventing it from achieving anything.”

The government actively views good governance as an obstacle- Political analyst and public policy lecturer George Vital Zammit

Zammit said he is shocked to witness a broad institutional capture of authorities and public entities and is incredulous of the way unethical leaders go unpunished. He acknowledged that the government has lately implemented positive reforms in the way judges and magistrates are appointed, for instance, but is still not impressed.

“I feel the government doesn’t implement measures like this out of conviction, but out of convenience or constraint,” he explained. “Changes like this happen in the wake of public protests or warnings from some EU delegation, but they are not at the heart of the government’s values.”

One of the many anti-corruption protests held in the last few years. Photo: Matthew Mirabelli

Former prime minister Lawrence Gonzi, who was beaten by Muscat in the 2013 election, was categoric: the country lost its values.

“We now have an economy that is addicted to money coming in from the sale of passports, construction, crypto, cannabis and nothing else that really matters,” he said.

“So much so that today we worry about the exodus of our younger generation who prefer to seek greener pastures far away from their home country.”

Labour MEP and former prime minister Alfred Sant said the accelerated economic growth rate also meant that governance and corruption problems increased.

“More wealth became available as a result of economic growth, causing good governance to take a hit and corruption to intensify. But such a phenomenon is common when the economy booms,” he said.

“Good governance and corruption have always been an issue, under all administrations. But economic growth might have fuelled them. Similarly, I believe they will start to matter to people when the economy takes a downturn.”

Former president and Labour minister Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca said that while a section of people have become wealthier, this has come at a huge cost to the country which has lost out to greed and personal interests.

Robert Abela and his wife Lydia greet Labour supporters following their record 2022 election win. Photo: Jonathan Borg

The country has lost out to greed and personal interests- Former president and Labour minister Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca

The problems with good governance did not dent Labour’s stronghold on voters, and in 10 years it managed to widen the voter gap with the PN from 30,000 to almost 40,000 votes. Zammit is concerned about the large majority, arguing it has led government to believe that nothing is a deterrent, because people will support it anyway.

“The Vitals (hospitals) deal was extremely serious, but in my view, nothing in these 10 years was more serious than the assassination of Daphne Caruana Galizia. That was by far the worst moment in our history,” he said.

Despite a lot of talk about sustainability, Labour lacks a lot of it.

“You can see it everywhere – in the influx of foreign workers, in the way the PA issues permits, and the environment,” he said.

The government views the environment as a project like any other, he said, choosing an area of rundown land and planting some trees and installing in some benches. The environment is much more than that, he added.

“Just look at the very few Labour mayors who are going against the stream – Qala’s Paul Buttigieg, Xagħra’s Christian Zammit and Gżira’s Conrad Borg Manché. They have to work against their party flow,” he said.

Graphic: Daniel Tihn