'Let’s close an era and start another' – Joseph Muscat

A positive Joseph Muscat this morning closed off the Labour Party's general conference, whose speech seemed to fuel his audience with hope as many could be seen nodding their head in approval at Muscat's speech and would not stop clapping at the end of his speech.

"Let us admit that four years we were broken. But today we are one," Muscat said. "Being united means being prudent and working together. We are here today because we believe in social justice, equality and freedom. These are the values which we stand for."

Muscat said the country will soon be faced with the moment of choice: "Prepare yourselves for a campaign of fear, based on lies. You will be told you cannot trust a 38-year-old leader or that there are candidates without any political experience. But remain hopeful that we are working with a new political system, with people who are technically ready to lead this country."

Muscat said the Labour Party had learnt from its past mistakes: "We are now led by the hope that new ideas will lead to better days. The choice is not simply choosing one party over the other, but whether as a country we want to close an era and start another."

Muscat said the party acknowledged that the beginning of the Eddie Fenech Adami administration had been a success and what the country had needed at the time. "But let us admit that that era has now reached the edge of failure. Like the people had chosen freedom in 1987, today we have the opportunity to close an era of the leadership of the cliques. It's useless arguing and complaining if we do not eliminate the culture of fear and show that we believe in hope."

Muscat said the Labour Party had the ambition to see the country as the best in Europe: "We are not afraid of the future, and most importantly we welcome the challenges which lie ahead. To those who ask us if we are ready to lead, my answer and the movement's answer is 'Yes'. With the principles which make us and unite us, I am ready to decide, to serve and to lead."

Muscat said that four years ago, the Labour Party went to the elections with a fundamental mistake: "We portrayed ourselves as an organisation with the belief that there was something written that the election would be ours. We all know what happened and we all remember the hurt we felt when we realised how close we had been to winning.

"But that election served us as a lesson. We learnt that what really counts is to always be ready to govern if chosen and that no one has the obligation to vote for us, but it is our duty to convince that we can be the better choice."

In a more personal tone, Muscat recounted how he grew up in "a humble family", with his mother's side favouring the Nationalists and his father's side the Labour: "No one ever gave us anything and my family never expected anyone to give them anything."

His family rarely discussed politics, which was an advantage, Muscat said. "I could understand the arguments on both sides and I was never forced to choose one party over the other. How could I choose between my mother and father?"

Muscat said the first time he learned about social justice was when his father fell ill and had to travel to the UK for medical tests: "They told me that the government would cover the expenses. I was amazed that the government was going to pay for someone who was nn one. I learnt that this was social justice and one of the fundamental values of the Labour Party."

His second encounter with politics was a talk he had with his mother's father. His grandfather had told him that he supported Eddie Fenech Adami because he was on the good side. "But good is not always on the same side. In 1976 I voted for Mintoff because he had given us pensions. But Labour is now cut off from the people," his grandfather had said.

Muscat said he had not been surprised when the PN won the 1987 elections: "Frankly, it was time for the PN to govern."

Moving on to his political career, Muscat said he had been faced with scepticism when he contested the MEP elections: "They told me I was too young. But I worked hard and gained results. Only my family and a few close friends had supported me. But I had one person who truly believed in me: George Vella. They were not afraid to trust me and I worked hard in return."

Recalling his candidature for the PL leadership, Muscat said his first reaction was to say no: "I knew it meant less time with my family, less income, to be faced with personal attacks, to have people attacking my family. But my heart was telling me to overcome the fear and be the change I wanted to see."

Midway through his speech, Muscat turned on his wife Michelle and thanked her for her support. Facing the camera to address his two daughters, Muscat apologised for the time he was not spending with them and for the suffering they might go through in the future because of his position.