PN open to discussing a rise in the minimum wage

The Nationalist Party has said it is open to discussing raising the minimum wage as a method of alleviating poverty locally.

Speaking at a press conference held in the wake of the Caritas study on poverty, social justice shadow minister Paula Mifsud Bonnici said that the PN was shocked by the results of the report, which indicated that some families cannot keep up with basic costs of living.

“The PN will be meeting with Caritas itself and with other social organisations to discuss the proposals made, including raising the minimum wage,” she said, adding however, that the party would only decide whether to support raising the minimum wage or not after the appropriate discussions had taken place.

In its report, Caritas argued that a gradual increase of the minimum wage over the next three years, currently at €672 a month, would ultimately boost the economy, leading to people using more money to consume basic items.

Remarking that the church organisation had made a number of interesting suggestions, Mifsud Bonnici explained that the PN was very willing to engage in discussions of the various recommendations.

“The government is bogged down with numbers and not working in the real issues,” she said, adding that the PN was seriously concerned by the results of the study.

She added that under the current government, poverty had increased rather than disappearing as the government had promised in its electoral manifesto.

Referring to the promised living wage, the PN added that the initiative had never been enacted and that cost of living had soared on certain products since the last time the study was carried out in 2011.

The study showed that a couple with two children requires a minimum of €11,466 a year to live a decent life, while a single parent with two children requires €9,197 and an elderly couple on pension requires €6,527, with food presenting the most significant cost, accounting for €6,211 out of the first family’s budget, €4,604 out of the second family’s budget, and €2,945 out of that of the pensioner couple.

Mifsud Bonnici added that the report had shown that prices for food had increased, with inflation rising by 16% between 2011 and 2015, leading to families spending some 50% of their pays on foods.


Housing spokesperson Stephen Spiteri said that the study was a clear message to the government, and that particular groups of society were always at risk of poverty.

“Although many have managed to leave a life of dependence on social benefits, many are now living in a situation of in-work poverty,” he said, adding that the benefits of the economy were not trickling down to all of society.

He further questioned the quality of jobs and pays as well as precarious jobs, and whether unemployment was being tackled properly to provide people with the possibility to make a leap from poverty.

“It is not enough to simply say unemployment is low because of the figures we are achieving, but we need to look into the payment being offered to people who apply for these jobs,” he said.

PN open to discussing a rise in minimum wage

Referring to family minister Michael Farrugia’s statement in parliament yesterday, elderly spokesperson Robert Cutajar said that the last minute nature of the statement showed the government’s concern and urgency about the matter.

He added that the 15% rise in people asking for social housing was a further indication of the PN's point that poverty is on the rise, and further pointed out that the average rate of poverty in Eurozone countries was of 6.9%, compared to Malta’s 8.1%.