Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1538990
8 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 31 AUGUST 2025 ANALYSIS harping on foreigners as a threat to the identity of the "ġens Malti" (Mal- tese ethnicity), raising justified con- cerns about liveability but doing so through an us-versus-them lens. Borg sounds more flexible, less bogged down by the past, and more inclined to preserve aspects of La- bour's economic model. This makes him appear moderate, though his conservative instincts sometimes surface when faced with direct ques- tions. While he downplays his past preference for Trump, the fact that he chose a conservative from outside the centre-right family of parties, namely Giorgia Meloni as his favourite poli- tician in an interview with MaltaTo- day speaks volumes on his political instincts. When MaltaToday asked whether children should be taught about dif- ferent gender identities in school, De- lia replied that "teaching is always a good thing." Borg, however, qualified his answer: "This depends on their age" and society "needs to give them time to understand the reality out there." He added that when children "reach the age when they can really understand the realities out there," he sees no problem with them learning about "all the realities that exist in our society." This stance may sound moderate but evades one fundamental reality— it is very young children in primary schools who face bullying because of their fluid gender identities or who could be ostracised because of their family background. On the other hand, Delia came close to suggesting that cannabis reforms should be reversed, telling Newsbook: "At the risk of sounding conservative, I do not agree with the notion of al- lowing recreational use of drugs… Do we need to be out of our minds to en- joy ourselves?" There was no self-awareness that this argument can also be used to ban alcohol. In contrast, Borg proposed tinkering with the reform, promising to "close loopholes, stop smoking in public places, and prevent abuse." It is the kind of statement which leaves every- body guessing. Stopping the clock without turning it back Borg's "moderation" may offer con- servatives a guarantee that he will stop the clock from moving forward in a progressive direction, without upset- ting middle-of-the-road voters. Of course, given Malta's electoral system—where parties must converge towards the centre to win—it is un- likely that the PN under either Borg or Delia will embrace a fully-fledged conservative path. For progressives, the fear is that once boundaries stop being pushed and conservatives start occupying key po- sitions in state agencies and authori- ties, the prospect of slow, incremental cultural regression sets in—particu- larly in a global climate shifting to the right, especially among younger men. In short, the PN may not turn the clock back immediately, but the clock may start moving back slowly and in- crementally, in the absence of a major push from above. Abela's conviction deficit The reason for Labour's vulnerability to a conservative backlash is that it has long abandoned conviction politics while burning bridges with those who passionately fight progressive battles. And while it is hard to imagine Mal- ta relapsing to the 'theocracy' it was before 2013, Maltese society is not immune to trends across Europe and the USA, where centre-left parties are increasingly vulnerable to a resurgent conservatism that appeals directly to working-class voters—voters who have lost the power to punch up but who feel increasingly empowered to punch down. Moreover, Labour's record on gov- ernance and planning, its lax enforce- >> CONTINUED FROM LAST PAGE Malta is at a crossroads, not just because the problems created by the current economic model are catching up with us in terms of liveability, but also because of signs that the attrition of power is eating away at Labour's reformist drive.