[WATCH] Muscat: Busuttil’s ‘economic errors will drive country to the wall’

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Labour leader Joseph Muscat took his political opponent to task over claims that raising the national minimum pension would only cost €8.5 million, arguing that Simon Busuttil’s “irresponsibility” will drive the country’s economy to the wall.

Addressing a sizeable crowd gathered in Santa Lucija, the Prime Minister said the PL was not criticizing the PN for its proposals, but for how they were proposing these would come into force.

Earlier, during a Facebook Live event, Muscat appeared before the cameras holding a calculator: the PN has pledged to increase the national minimum pension by €22 a week.

“If you multiply €22 by 52 weeks and multiply that by the number of pensions (18,000), the figure reaches €20 million,” he said, mocking the PN for claiming this would only cost €8.5 million.

“We are not criticizing you [Busuttil] for the proposal but your irresponsibility. You don’t know how to lead the country’s economy and you will risk the places of work that we have worked so hard to create together.”

Muscat reiterated that “this is symptomatic of a coalition of confusion”, as he urged the electorate against voting for the PN and PD candidates.

The Labour leader said that the PN had not even realized that there already existed summer schools for children with disability. “The PN is pledging to introduce summer schools – not adding to – without even realizing that we already have a number of summer schools open,” he said.

Urging them to help get the PL re-elected for a second term, Muscat asked the party faithful and “people of goodwill” to help deliver the message that the country should continue moving forward.

“We should be truly convinced that the best time of our country has yet to come,” he said, to clapping.