Robert Abela on Sunday said Maltese society should not be built purely on the pursuit of money. 

Speaking during an interview on ONE Radio, Abela said that apart from having a strong financial base, people also place value on other aspects of life like the environment and equality.

He said the reality faced by Labour when it took over the country’s leadership 11 years ago was different from the reality faced today.

Back then, the priority was stimulating the economy and helping families become financially stable. Quality of life then was associated with financial stability. 

Abela said society has since changed and priorities shifted.

“What sort of society do we want? A society where money is the be all and end all, or one where money is important, but is not the ultimate goal,” Abela asked.

The prime minister also touched upon concerns about the influx of foreign workers over the past year.

A state of the nation survey published last week found over one in every four people are “very uncomfortable” with Malta’s multiculturalism.

Abela rejected claims that Malta’s economic growth was fuelled purely by the boom in foreign workers.

He spoke about the need to focus on the creation of quality jobs, rather than focussing purely on employment numbers.

The prime minister rejected calls by the European Commission this week to phase out Malta’s energy and fuel subsidies, in light of the country's growing deficit. 

He said the subsidies had been one of Malta’s main measures to combat inflation.

“This does not mean we will ignore the Commission. We will go to them and explain the need for these subsidies due to Malta’s unique situation, given the lack of a gas interconnector and the country’s distance from the European mainland,” Abela said.

Abela played down concerns about Malta’s rising deficit, saying the government is committed to its plan to reduce it by 0.5% yearly.

He said the deficit was a consequence of investing in people, something  the government did not plan to stop doing.

Abela said while the PN government had let national debt balloon to 70%, Malta’s deficit under Labour was well under the EU’s 60% threshold.

He said the government will deliver a “strong and positive” budget that addressed the middle class and offered strong incentives.

On the nomination of PN MEP Roberta Metsola for a second term as European Parliament's president, Abela reiterated that the government would be backing the nomination.

He said this did not however mean that the government agreed with many of the “wrong” decisions taken by Metsola.

Abela contrasted the government’s position with the PN’s, saying the Opposition took every possible opportunity to undermine Labourites who were nominated for prominent positions with the EU institutions.

The PN has already put the government on notice about its plans to nominate PL backbencher Edward Zammit Lewis as a European Court judge, saying it was an insult to all those who believed in justice.