Bidliet meħtieġa fil-mod kif il-qasam tal-assikurazzjoni jmexxi x-xogħol tiegħu se jiddaħħlu mill-Kummissjoni Ewropea fuq bażi Ewropea. Kulħadd jaqbel li l-bidliet għad jagħmlu tajjeb. Il-Kummissjoni qed tinsisti li huma jridu jkunu fis-seħħ sa ċertu żmien.
Il-qasam hu magħmul minn ditti kbar għal oħrajn iċken għal ditti ċkejkna ħafna. F’Malta, l-maġġoranza kbira tal-kumpaniji huma minn tal-aħħar. Se jkollhom jagħmlu spejjeż, għalihom kbar, biex ilaħħqu mad-direttiva li se toħroġ il-Kummissjoni. L-agħar problema għalihom imma hi li mhux se jkunu jistgħu jlaħħqu mad-data li ssettjat il-Kummissjoni għall-bidliet. Qed jitolbu għal aktar żmien. Mhumiex jitolbu ħafna.
Għandna hawn eżempju ieħor ta’ vizzju Ewropew: iridu jlibbsu l-istess żarbun lil kulħadd. Fl-aħħar snin, dad-deni naqas. Imma għadu hemm. Jolqot ħażin l-aktar lill-pajjiżi ż-żgħar fl-Unjoni. Il-kbar għandhom aktar x’jilqagħlhom: il-le tagħhom jammonta għal theddida li ma jħallux proposta titwettaq jekk tibqa’ kif tkun. Jingħataw widen.
MEUSAC
Attendejt laqgħa tal-MEUSAC, il-kunsill li jeżamina żviluppi Ewropej bis-sehem tal-gvern u tal-korpi ekonomiċi u soċjali tal-pajjiż. Għad-diskussjoni, kellna r-riformi li qed jiġu proposti fl-Unjoni Ewropea għaż-żona tal-ewro. Hu suġġett kruċjali għal Malta li ma tantx nagħtu kasu. Donna rassenjati li se nimxu skont il-linji li jfasslu l-membri l-oħra taż-żona, fuq quddiem nett il-pajjiżi l-kbar.
Filfatt dak li għamilna sa issa: minn deċiżjonijiet dwar kif tiġi trattata l-Greċja għal oħrajn dwar kif għandhom jiġu miflija u msewwija l-baġits nazzjonali tal-pajjiżi membri.
Uħud mill-proposti li jissemmew jikkonċentraw il-poteri fit-tmexxija tal-ewro waqt li jsaħħuhom.
Jekk jgħaddu… li sa issa ma tantx hu probabbli… l-ewro bħala munita nazzjonali tagħna jsir għalina bħall-isterlina fiż-żmien meta din ukoll kienet il-munita tagħna.
BAĠIT 2018
Fi żmien meta l-ekonomija tibqa’ tirranka – kif ġara dis-sena – id-dilemmi fit-tfassil tal-baġit tal-gvern ikunu differenti minn tas-“soltu” meta trid tara fejn u kif se tqanċeċ. Xorta waħda jkunu diffiċli ħafna.
L-ewwel nett, ma tridx tbarri t-tqanċiċ mill-proċess: fis-sens li sfida enormi f’baġit bħal dan hu li ma tħallix li mar-rankatura ekonomika, tirranka wkoll il-ħala. Imma kif għandu jintlaħaq dan il-għan?
Imbagħad hemm l-għażliet dwar kif se tiddoża l-miżuri. Kif se żżomm bilanċ bejn żieda f’nefqa meħtieġa imma politikament ftit issarraf, u żieda f’nefqa anqas meħtieġa imma trendi politikament; bejn dak li jista’ jiġġenera riżultati tajba ħafna fil-quddiem b’ċansijiet ċkejkna li jasal, u ieħor fejn ir-riżultati huma żguri imma jaslu bil-lajma; bejn anqas taxxa jew nefqa akbar; bejn il-popolari għalkemm ftit utli, u dak li jixhed prudenza imma jinħass bħala xeħħa.
English Version- One size fits…
Needed changes to the ways by which the insurance sector conducts its business are being introduced by the European Commission across the EU. All agree that these changes are for the good. The Commision is however insisting they should come into effect by a certain date.
Players in the sector range from very big companies to smaller entities to very small units. In Malta the latter constitute the huge majority. They will need to commit to expenditures, for them signficant, in order to conform to the directive that the Commission will be issuing. For them though, the problem is that they will not be able to change their administrative systems in time to observe the date set by the Commission for completion of its reforms. They are requesting a delay… which is hardly out of this world.
So here we get again another instance of a prevailing European syndrome: that of insisting on one-size-fits-all approaches. In recent years, there was a decline in that infectious fever but it is still there, mainly to restrain the smaller members of the Union. The bigger members can play it better; their say-no could be understood as a threat to prevent the implementation of a proposal unless it is suitably amended. Which means that their views are fully taken into account.
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MEUSAC
I attended a meeting of MEUSAC, the council which examines EU-Malta issues and in which participate government’s representatives as well as those coming from the island’s economic and social constituted bodies.
The reforms that are being proposed for the eurozone were on the agenda. It is a crucial subject for Malta even if we do not seem to be much aware of the stakes involved. It seems like we have become resigned to the fact that we need to follow in the footsteps of the other eurozone members, with the larger ones at the front.
Indeed, that is what we have done up to now – on decisions ranging from how Greece has been dealt with, to others that concern how the national budgets of member states get evaluated and corrected.
Some of the proposals under review will centralize and reinforce management powers over the euro.
If they go through (which at present sounds not so probable), for us the euro currency will hardly be any different from sterling, when it too was our national currency.
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Budget 2018
At a time when the economy keeps rolling forward – as has happened this year – the dilemmas that arise when drafting the budget are different from the “usual” ones, involving where and how to economize. But they still remain very difficult.
In first place, one cannot banish from the process the drive to economize. An enormous challenge in such a budget is not to let waste accelerate on the back of the economic momentum. How can such a goal be reached?
Then there come the choices that need to be made regarding how to merge and mix the available options. How to balance a rise in expenditure that is necessary but politically unrewarding, with a rise in spending on less useful projects which afford a good political payback. How to evaluate commitments in favour of long term projects having dim prospects of success but that could generate very good results in the future if successful, by contrast with options that make for surefire results delivered very very slowly. How to decide between less tax or more government expenditures. How to draw a line between what is popular but less than useful, and what gives proof of prudence while running the risk of being judged stingy.
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