Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1545479
IT is fashionable for Maltese political parties to declare that ideology is dead and that we now do politics in a different way. In other words that means they stand for nothing. Of all the Labour ministers, I like Clyde Caruana, especially when he declares that he is a Mintoffian. But apart from his modest approach to life in gen- eral, which is noted, Caruana must admit that there is noth- ing remotely Mintoffian in his economics. Caruana, though popular with Labour diehards, is also very respected in busi- ness circles. Of all the speeches that res- onate from the election cam- paign, it was Lydia Abela's that was the winner when it comes to the communication of core values. She emphasised three salient points: She is a Bormliża (home to dockyard workers); a soċjalista; and the daughter of a working-class family. She en- compassed the core values of the Labour Party. But let us admit that the PL is today represented by a well-ed- ucated class of professionals, who do not even know what a hammer and a nail look like. They send their children to pri- vate schools and know more about Chablis and designer clothes than most folk. The notion that today the PL is the representative of the work- ing class is utter hogwash. It is in fact a popular party with a liberal outlook and a willingness to introduce change. But it has a problem with solidarity issues and has a great deficit on envi- ronmental themes. And when it comes to winning elections, it steers clear of con- troversy and is willing to dump principles. Now let me make a parenthe- sis. This in no way means that the Nationalist Party is in pos- session of a political project with a clear purpose. Today, the PN is a popular party with a conservative streak. Long gone are the Christian democrat core values. Like the Labour Party, it works on the premise that if a party appears to solve the peo- ple's concerns and gives them a dream it can win. Way back in 2014, Fr Peter Serracino Inglott, a PN ideo- logue, warned that the Euro- pean People's Party's election gains did not represent a victory for Christian democracy, but rather a reduction of its core values in favour of conservative forces. The political parties have one core concern to win power at all costs. And that brings us back to the PL, winner of four consecu- tive elections. To continue arguing that it is a socialist or social democrat party but then act at a complete tangent to what a socialist party stands for is linked to its win- ning streak as a popular party. I am talking here about Alex Agius Saliba, Thomas Baja- da and Daniel Attard, who on Wednesday in the European Parliament voted on the migra- tion return rules along the lines of the European centre-right and far-right. They ditched the socialist bloc. The three Maltese Labour MEPs stuck out like a sore thumb, with no regret that they moved away from their 'social- ist' brothers and sisters and backed a tough, ICE-like Trum- pian approach to migrants. Now, the three MEPs come from a country where the econ- omy is wholly dependent on third country nationals, where thousands of Maltese are either employed with government or in highly paid jobs with the pri- vate sector. And where unem- ployment is virtually zero. But they also come from a country which is deeply xeno- phobic and Islamophobic. So, to suck up to their constit- uency they are willing to shed all ideological baggage and prin- ciples. Together with the clap- trap discourse about mosques being built in every corner of Malta, embracing an ICE-like approach to migrants is clearly right wing and conservative. Unlike other countries border- ing the Mediterranean, Malta is experiencing a super economy and a boom. But as the numbers rise and rise and we surpass all fiscal targets our moral compass takes a beating. The Labour Party needs to do some soul searching and ask it- self what it was born from and for what reason. To be honest I was not too surprised with Agius Saliba, who always seems to sound like the saviour of hunters, firework enthusiasts and other untouchables. But I am shocked that Daniel Attard and Thomas Bajada went along with this resolution. I expected something better from them. I never expected Peter Agius or David Casa to vote different- ly. The PN MEPs have been at least consistent in following the EPP in everything except when it comes to the issue of abortion. Today, when I see the Maltese representation in the Europe- an Parliament, I see individu- als who have little in the way of principle and are simply in- terested in retaining their vot- er base and continue with their unforgettable well paid 'sojourn' in Brussels and beyond. 7 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 21 JUNE 2026 OPINION To be or not to be a socialist Founder and co-owner of Media Today, publisher of MaltaToday, he is a TV host and pollster The three Maltese Labour MEPs stuck out like a sore thumb, with no regret that they moved away from their 'socialist' brothers and sisters and backed a tough ICE-like Trumpian approach to migrants Saviour Balzan Alex Agius Saliba, Daniel Attard, Thomas Bajada