Labour increased student stipends after already having improved them before.
2022 manifesto Item 260 explicitly promised +15% on stipends after already adding +10% earlier. Budget 2026 confirmed: +15% across the board, plus an extra grant for Gozitan students studying in Malta.
2022 manifesto Item 260 explicitly promised +15% on stipends after already adding +10% earlier. Budget 2026 confirmed: +15% across the board, plus an extra grant for Gozitan students studying in Malta.
Item 260 of the 2022 PL manifesto reads almost word-for-word like Abela's claim: 'We just increased stipends by 10% — in the next legislature we'll add another 15%.' Budget 2026 confirmed a 15% increase in stipends for all students, plus a separate higher grant for Gozitan students studying in Malta. The promise was specific, the delivery matched, and the framing of 'after already improving them before' is factually accurate — the 2022 manifesto explicitly references the prior 10% step. True.
Did Labour really deliver the promised student stipend increase
Of the manifesto-delivery claims in this speech, the stipend one is the cleanest. The promise was unusually specific, and the budget figures match it almost exactly.
The 2022 promise
Item 260 of the 2022 PL manifesto reads, in full: 'L-istipendju huwa bżonn u mhux lussu. Għadna kif żidna l-istipendju b'10% u fil-leġiżlatura li jmiss ser nerġgħu nżidu dan l-ammont bi 15% oħra.'
Translation: 'The stipend is a need, not a luxury. We have just increased the stipend by 10% and in the next legislature we will increase this amount by another 15%.'
That is a specific commitment: +15% across the legislature, building on a +10% already delivered.
What Budget 2026 confirmed
Budget 2026 implemented the manifesto promise:
- +15% increase in stipends for all students
- Additional grant for Gozitan students studying in Malta
- Continued pro-rata COLA mechanism for stipends
The 15% figure matches the manifesto's number. The '+10% before' framing is documented in the manifesto itself.
Plus an extra grant for Gozitan students studying in Malta — a layer the manifesto didn't promise.
So is the claim accurate?
Yes. The 2022 promise was 15% on top of a previous 10%. The 2026 delivery is 15% on top of that previous 10%. Promise made, promise kept, framing accurate.
Verdict: True.