Peppi Azzopardi said the government should cover the salaries of parents who choose to stop working to raise their children during their first three years.“If a husband or wife wants to stay at home to raise their children for the first three years, the government should pay their salaries in full,” Azzopardi said.“People might ask where the money will come from, but we’re already subsidising childcare. Can’t we just give this money to parents to take care of their babies themselves?”While Azzopardi welcomed the tax cuts for parents that were announced in the 2026 Budget, he argued that the most serious obstacle that working parents face is the sheer lack of time to look after their children.“People constantly tell me that they desire time more than anything else,” he said. “As it stands, they are constantly dropping off and picking up their children here and there from as early as 6am.”In this vein, Azzopardi welcomed proposals for a four-day week and argued that advances in AI mean companies won’t need to hire more foreign workers to make up for reduced staff hours.He also reiterated his suggestion that employees who can and wish to work from home should have the right to do so.“Workers are being give a €3,000 tax cut but they’re also forced to spend a minimum of ten hours a week stuck in traffic, and they’re paying for this wasted time themselves,” he said.“When you think about it, they need a 25% raise for the hours they waste in traffic. A worker on the average wage is basically being robbed of €4,000 – €5,000 a year.”Photo left: Peppi Azzopardi•