Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/818637
WWW.MALTATODAY.COM.MT WEDNESDAY EDITION €1.00 Newspaper post WEDNESDAY • 3 MAY 2017 • ISSUE 520 • PUBLISHED EVERY WEDNESDAY AND SUNDAY PAGE 4 ELECTIONS DAYS TO GO 31 The undecided: 16% of young voters will not vote JAMES DEBONO ONE out of every six (16%) voters aged 18 to 34 will not vote in the next election, the latest MaltaToday survey shows. The survey however shows that the number of younger people who have made up their mind on which party they will be vot- ing for has increased from 61% to 69% over last month 's survey. But while younger people are less undecided than oth- er age groups on which par- ty they will vote for, more are likely to say that they won't vote. The percentage of non-voters among 18- to 34-year-olds has gone up from 10% in April to 16% now. On the other hand 35- to 54-year-olds – the age group where Labour is strongest – are the most likely to be un- decided. 16% (up from 13% last month) in this age group are now undecided. Labour is still enjoying its greatest lead among 35- to 54-year-olds and the Na- tionalist Party is just two points behind Labour party among those over 55 years of age. Moreover for the first time Simon Busuttil is more trusted than Muscat among those aged over 55 years. Among this age group Bu- suttil leads Muscat by three points even if the PN lags two points behind Labour. MALTATODAY SURVEY PAGE 6 PHOTOGRAPHY BY JAMES BIANCHI Muscat pledges tax cuts, new roads and bank holidays TIM DIACONO TAX refunds, resurfacing of every road in Malta, first-time buyers and giving workers back the public holidays that fall on a weekend are amongst the priorities for a new La- bour government. In a preview of five proposals which the Labour Party will be pre- senting in its electoral manifesto – the manifesto is currently under in- ternal consultation – Labour leader Joseph Muscat yesterday said that his administration completed 95% of its 2013 electoral manifesto and has a clear and costed plan for a second term. Muscat, who had previously said that the general election will be held in March 2018, denied that his decision to announce a snap elec- tion stemmed out of panic at re- ports that his wife owns an offshore Panama company. Instead, he insisted that he want- ed to ensure that the current po- litical instability doesn't negatively impact the economy. "It would have been the easiest thing in the world for me to weath- er the storm in the seat of power, while waiting for the magisterial inquiry to clear my name before calling an election," he said. "How- ever, in those few months the econ- omy would have been damaged and jobs would have been lost. I could see the early signs of this happen- ing and so I took the responsible decision." Muscat also challenged PN leader Simon Busuttil on his claim that the next election will be "a choice between Malta and Joseph Mus- cat". "His campaign slogan is 'I choose Malta' but that isn't the question. The question is whether Malta wants to choose myself or Simon Busuttil. I have made mistakes and I have paid the price for them, but I have never shied away from the public's justice. It appears as though Simon Busuttil has a problem with the public judging him directly for his actions." ANALYSIS: Why did Muscat call snap election? PAGE 5 Muscat in fifth district showdown with Marlene Farrugia PAGE 7 Busuttil: Election will not wash away corruption PAGE 8