Muscat says financial uncertainty cannot be solved by instability

Opposition leader Joseph Muscat said the financial uncertainty which Malta is facing cannot be solved by the current political instability and said "Unfortunately GonziPN has not done anything to end the uncertainty."

Muscat conceded that the downgrade of Malta's credit rating by Standard and Poor's is down to the euro zone crisis irrespectively of which party is in government. However he said a new government led by him "would tackle the financial uncertainty."

"The €40 million budget cuts were ordered by the European Commission and were not government's initiative. This morning Finance Minister Tonio Fenech said government will introduce further cuts. However he did not say which programmes and initiatives will be cut," Muscat said.

Muscat described the 2012 Budget as "amateurish" and said "it was not credible." The Labour leader added "Unfortunately the latest developments confirm the economic forecasts Labour had made,"

Asked who would be Finance Minister under a new Labour government, in a dig at Wikileak's revelations of Gonzi's complaint to the American ambassador of having limited talent in his ranks, Muscat said he was "lucky to have a team full of talent from where to choose from."

In regards to next week's parliamentary vote of no-confidence in government Muscat said "Whatever happens stability is no longer guaranteed by this government. It has been hopping from one crisis to another. We waited for government to present a vote of confidence itself to give Lawrence Gonzi an honourable way out."