No billboards or political meetings for Christmas truce – Labour

Labour leader Joseph Muscat today announced his party's electoral campaign would be a positive one based on "unity and change", in a press conference he gave following a party executive meeting on the day after the government's budget was voted down, paving way for elections.

While both parties are set to enter a Christmas truce ahead of the 7 January, 2013 dissolution of parliament, Muscat today said his party will not carry out "scaremongering" political campaigns.

"The Maltese are thirsty to move forward into a new future. We don't want to denigrate our opponents... we're satisfied with our team spirit, in full realisation of the task ahead of us to convince more people."

Muscat dubbed Lawrence Gonzi an "agent of fear", referring to an anonymous leaflet mailed to civil service workers warning them against voting for Labour, and accused the government of using the civil service's personal data files for a targeted mailshot. "Scaremongering is the PN's weapon."

Muscat also said the prime minister had been wrong to delay the budget until late November, a move that has seen Gonzi's government last until December, and now with a Christmas truce ahead, a campaign of two months starting in January that will mean his government will have been in power for five years and one day on the 9 March election day.

"We are used to this filibustering. We agreed that there will be no campaigning next week, which means no mass political activities or billboards," Muscat said.

The Labour leader also said it was the prime minister's prerogative when to dissolve the parliament, the Constitutional mechanism of which has no time-frame.

Gonzi today consulted the President of the Republic on dissolving parliament, which is expected to take place on 7 January.

Constitutionally he is obliged to advise the President on dissolving the House within three days of the voting-down of the money bill. But since the Budget is not a confidence vote in itself, the prime minister was free to advise on a writ to dissolve the House in early January. Once the House is dissolved, the vote-collection exercise commences.

Muscat said he agreed with Gonzi that it would be unwise to start the electoral campaign during the Christmas season.