Corruption Ranked As Malta’s Biggest Problem With Cost Of Living Most Pressing Personal Concern
Maltese voters have ranked corruption as the country’s most pressing problem, with the rising cost of living confirmed as the prominent personal issue.
In a Misco survey commissioned by Lovin Malta ahead of the general election, 17% of respondents stated that corruption is the country’s largest problem.
It’s quite an eye-opener, especially considering the economic and safety problems plaguing the country and the world right now, but perhaps hardly surprising considering Malta was greylisted by the FATF less than a year ago.
Health and the COVID-19 pandemic, cost of living, and the Ukraine crisis came in as joint second concerns, mentioned by 11% of respondents.
The environment and construction issue was a close third, mentioned by 10% of respondents.
Although there wasn’t much of a distinction in the perceptions of men and women, clear divergencies emerge among different age groups.
People aged between 16-24 ranked the environment and construction and cost of living as their top two issues, while 25-54 year olds cited corruption and cost of living and those older than 55 mentioned corruption, health and the pandemic and the Ukraine crisis.
There were also a clear divide across party lines, with PL voters ranking health and the pandemic, the Ukraine crisis and the environment/construction as their most pressing concerns, and PN voters opting for corruption and cost of living.
Corruption and the Ukraine crisis were the two main issues among those who regret the way they voted at the 2017 election.
Russian President Vladimir Putin
Asked which party is most suited to solve the main issue facing the country, 33% mentioned the PL, 26% mentioned the PN, 27% stated that neither party is suited and the remaining 14% did not express an opinion.
Meanwhile, the rising cost of living was ranked as the most pressing problem people are facing personal, ranked by 17% of respondents.
It was followed by income and pensions, mentioned by 11% of respondents, and the environment and construction, mentioned by 10%.
Cost of living concerns are evident across the board, with inflation ranked as the number one personal problem among both PL and PN voters. However, income/pensions was the primary personal issue among those who regret the way they voted in 2017.
Asked which party is most suited to solve their personal problems, 31% of respondents mentioned the PL, 25% mentioned the PN, 22% stated that neither party is suited and the remaining 22% did not express an opinion.
Asked to name the most important issue that will determine the way they will vote at the election, most respondents – 17% – mentioned incomes and pensions.
It was followed by corruption, mentioned by 16% of respondents, and the environment
and construction, mentioned by 11%.
Males ranked income as the main issue is incomes while females prioritised corruption, and younger respondents and first-time voters ranked construction and the environment, corruption and incomes.
This survey was conducted among a random sample of 457 respondents between the 9th March and 11th March. Interviews were conducted on the telephone by trained interviewers under the direct supervision of MISCO coordinators. Respondents were selected using the random digit dialling method.
A total of 574 persons were contacted to achieve a sample of 457 respondents. A sample of 457 provides a margin of error within ±4.7%. However when one applies the weighting efficiency resulting from the weighting of the data by age, gender and region, the margin of error increases to ±5.4%. The weighting efficiency is the amount of skewing that had to be done to align the sample to the actual population data.
What is the most important issue that will determine the way you will vote at the election?
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