Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1544871
7 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 10 MAY 2026 ELECTION 2026 ANALYSIS Second week: PN rebound, tax relief and fat cats After a slow start, the Nationalist Party regains momentum in the second week of the campaign but its policy direction increasingly points toward tax relief for higher earners, and stronger protection of inherited wealth IN communication terms, the second week of the election campaign marked a clear re- covery for the Nationalist Party (PN) after an opening phase in which it appeared outpaced by the Labour Party's tightly man- aged and emotionally targeted strategy. Labour dominated the ear- ly days with a "cradle to grave" approach built around direct benefits and reassurance poli- tics, while the PN initially strug- gled to articulate a coherent re- sponse. By week two, however, the Op- position had stabilised its cam- paign, shifting toward a more disciplined, managerial and sec- tor-based approach reminiscent of earlier technocratic PN strat- egies, adapted to today's populist political environment. Historically, while the PN had to shift to the centre left by en- dorsing Dom Mintoff's welfare state to become competitive in the 1970s, the party is now fight- ing on Labour's own populist terrain, albeit retaining its class bias for higher income earners. In this sense the more impor- tant development is not simply the PN's mediatic recovery, but its deeper convergence with La- bour's economic model—while subtly reshaping it in favour of higher earners, asset holders and inherited privilege. Inheritance, inequality and protection of accumulated advantage Building on this tax shift, the clearest ideological signal in the PN programme is its proposal to abolish stamp duty on inherited property and family businesses as well as the tax on family do- nations. Alex Borg in reply to a ques- tion by MaltaToday called in- heritance taxes "an injustice", insisting it did not make sense for children who inherited their parents to pay taxes once again on the property. "This is an in- justice we will redress for all sec- tions of society," he said. But while presented as relief for middle-income families and a way of addressing the anxie- ties of people inheriting a small property who end up facing a tax bill, the measure has far broader structural implications. It is also worth reminding that under the existing tax regime property in- herited directly from a parent is already subject to significant ex- emptions and reductions. By removing taxation regard- less of estate size, it overwhelm- ingly benefits larger estates, long-established property hold- ings and family business struc- tures. Inheritance is one of the key mechanisms through which in- equality is reproduced across generations. When wealth is transferred without fiscal con- straint, it compounds over time, allowing advantage to accumu- late independently of work or income. In this way inherited capital will pass between generations with minimal state intervention. This creates a structural imbal- ance—earnings from work re- main subject to taxation, while unearned wealth transfers are progressively shielded. Even when framed as "family relief", the largest gains accrue to those inheriting high-value property portfolios, landhold- ings and business assets. The risk of this policy is the consolidation of accumulated advantage. Rather than treating inherited wealth as an object of fiscal bal- ancing, it is increasingly treated as something politically insulat- ed from redistribution. But Labour is unable to strong- ly oppose measures that will give higher earners greater advantage JAMES DEBONO jdebono@mediatoday.com.mt CONTINUES ON NEXT PAGE > Alex Borg has grown in confidence with the second week of the electoral campaign seeing the Nationalist Party rebound from its initial slow start