Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1547166
7.5%. The only other issue mentioned by more than 5% of respondents was infla- tion (5.7%) closely followed by corruption (4.8%). Population growth and traffic had al- ready emerged as the dominant concerns in a survey held a year ago. Concern on population growth includes a variety of concerns related to the increase of peo- ple living in Malta, including infrastruc- tural pressures and increased population densities. A separate but related concern was the increase in foreign workers, men- tioned as the main concern by 2.7%. But compared with the MaltaToday sur- vey published in October 2025, concern about population growth has risen from 22.3% to 30.4%, while traffic has increased from 20.3% to 28.6%. Construction has edged up from 6.9% to 7.5%. Remarkably, concern on inflation has dropped from 13.4% to 5.7%. The 1.8-percentage-point gap between the top two issues falls within the survey's margin of error of ±3.4 percentage points. PL voters more worried by traffic Among respondents intending to vote for the Labour Party (PL), traffic was the leading concern at 34.5%, followed by population growth at 30.4%. Construc- tion was cited by 5%, while corruption registered just 0.2%. Among prospective Nationalist Par- ty (PN) voters, population growth led at 28%, followed by traffic at 23.6% and cor- ruption at 10.5%. Construction was cited by 9.5%. Among those intending to vote for smaller parties, population growth reached a staggering 34.6%, while 17.4% cited corruption. Traffic was much low- er at 10.7%, and concern on construction stood at 12.2%. The survey suggests that concern on corruption is now higher among small party voters than among PN voters. The October 2025 survey showed a similar broad contrast. A year ago, traf- fic led among Labour voters, while popu- lation growth led among Nationalist vot- ers. Corruption was cited by 14.3% of PN voters and 2.4% of PL voters in that sur- vey. The latest results continue to show corruption as a more prominent concern among prospective PN and smaller-party voters than among prospective PL voters. Among respondents who said they would abstain in a forthcoming election, population growth was cited by 33.3%, followed by traffic at 29.1% and construc- tion at 7.9%. The cost of living was men- tioned by 5.7%, while corruption was cit- ed by only 1.7%. Younger people more worried by population growth Population growth was the leading con- cern among respondents aged 16 to 50, peaking at 36% among those aged 16 to 35 and reaching 33.3% among those aged 36 to 50. Among younger respondents, traf- fic followed at 29.5%, while concern on property prices (3.7%) was more promi- nent than older age groups. But concern on construction is high- er among older respondents, increasing from 6.4% among 16- to 35-year-olds and 5.1% among those aged between 36 and SUNDAY • 18 OCTOBER 2026 | maltatoday PL voters more worried by traffic, < FROM PREVIOUS PAGE Population Construction Cost Corruption Environment Foreign Governance Property This survey was conducted between Wednesday 22 September and 2 October. The survey was based on a representative sample of 835 respondents. The sampling approach followed a stratified random design, ensuring proportional representation across key demographic variables such as age, gender, and locality. At a 95% confidence level, the overall survey results carry a margin of error of ±3.4%. It is important to note that while the overall sample provides robust national-level estimates, the margin of error increases when results are disaggregated into smaller strata or sub-groups (for example, by age bracket, region, or voting intention). This occurs because smaller sample sizes within each subgroup carry higher statistical variability. Therefore, findings at sub-group level should be interpreted with caution and viewed as indicative trends rather than precise estimates. All data collection adhered to professional survey standards, with strict quality control applied at each stage to minimise potential sources of bias, including questionnaire design, fieldwork supervision, and data processing. MaltaToday is responsible for formulation of questions, timing of survey, data collection and analysis of the results. Mizzi Consultancy Ltd provided statistical support and software. Male Population growth Tra-c Construction Cost of Living Corruption Environment Foreign workers Governance Property Prices Discipline 29.2% 31.5% 5% 4.4% 4% 2.7% 2.2% 2.9% 1.4% 1.3% Demographic breakdown Population growth Tra-c Construction Cost of Living Corruption Environment Foreign workers Governance Property Prices Discipline 28.0% 23.6% 9.5% 6.8% 10.5% 2.9% 2.8% 3.1% 2% 1% This survey was conducted between Wednesday 22 September and 2 October. The survey was based on a representative sample of 835 respondents. The sampling approach followed a stratified random design, ensuring proportional representation across key demographic variables such as age, gender, and locality. At a 95% confidence level, the overall survey results carry a margin of error of ±3.4%. It is important to note that while the overall sample provides robust national-level estimates, the margin of error increases when results are disaggregated into smaller strata or sub-groups (for example, by age bracket, region, or voting intention). This occurs because smaller sample sizes within each subgroup carry higher statistical variability. Therefore, findings at sub-group level should be interpreted with caution and viewed as indicative trends rather than precise estimates. All data collection adhered to professional survey standards, with strict quality control applied at each stage to minimise potential sources of bias, including questionnaire design, fieldwork supervision, and data processing. MaltaToday is responsible for formulation of questions, timing of survey, data collection and analysis of the results. Mizzi Consultancy Ltd provided statistical support and software. Female Population growth Tra-c Construction Cost of Living Corruption Environment Foreign workers Governance Property Prices Discipline 31.5% 25.6% 10.0% 7.0% 5.5% 2.8% 3.1% 1.3% 1.9% 1.7% Demographic breakdown Top concerns by gender: Men Top concerns by gender: Women