'No urgency in calling snap election,' PL deputy leader Agius Saliba says

Alex Agius Saliba has denied rumours of a snap election, stating there is no urgency within the Party to call one and that there are no discussions about an electoral date.

Speaking on Saturday to Campus FM show host Andrew Azzopardi, the Labour deputy leader for party affairs, and MEP, said the Labour Party is in no rush or urgency to trigger an election.

He also brushed aside suggestions that a sudden flood of billboards added across the country was additional evidence that a general election was around the corner. He said, however, that the party always advertised heavily ahead of its annual Workers’ Day rally on 1 May.

Agius Saliba there were never any plans to announce an election during its party congress, which closed on Friday evening with an event featuring Prime Minister Robert Abela.

During his address on Friday, Abela pitched himself and the Labour government as a steady hand in times of crises. The speech, held during the closing session of Labour’s national congress, Malta Aqwa (A better Malta), comes amid growing anticipation that the country could head to the polls earlier than expected, with Abela using the platform to underline his government’s crisis-management credentials and economic record.

Abela also highlighted that the ideas discussed during the five-day event would help share Labour’s manifesto for the next general election. Although the Prime Minister has until March 2027 to call a general election, the party congress's theme, “Malta Aqwa!” (‘A Stronger Malta’), has led to mounting speculation about a possible early general election in the coming weeks.

The Labour Party statute allows the congress to convene to select a leader upon request from the executive committee or “before a general election to discuss the party's political guidelines."

Agius Saliba said this time he wanted the party to discuss its ideas without the pressure of a looming election. “I wanted us to have an open, honest discussion before a campaign, not in the midst of one.”

He pointed out that many people genuinely thought this was a sign on an election announcement, but he clarified that it was just to establish guidelines for the election.

Calling an election was entirely the prime minister’s prerogative, Agius Saliba insisted.

He stated that neither he nor his colleagues know the election date. Although he and other Labour leaders have begun discussing the party’s electoral manifesto, they have not yet talked about when the election will take place.

“To this day, there has been no need to discuss this. We have not had any discussions about that until today.”