Former Prime Minister and Maltese MEP Alfred Sant said that EU governments should commit their resolve to guarantee sustainable pensions and whenever there is a deficit between income and revenue, fork out the difference annually from their Budgets. Dr Sant made this intervention at the European Parliament during the debate “The future of pensions: fighting privatisation and strengthening public universal social security systems.”
Dr Sant said the questions of sustainability and adequacy that face basic pension systems need first to be faced and solved on a national basis, before they can realistically be dealt with on a European basis.
“In my view such solutions cannot only be grounded on increasing the workspan in citizens’ lives and on a rise in contributions. Nor should they be reduced to a further privatisation of parts of the pension system. The latter should be regarded as an integral part of the public commitment within the state budget, with the highest priority to the most vulnerable. Indeed, this is part of the wider European heritage on the social front shared by the right and the left, from Bismarck to Willy Brandt. It should not be abandoned.” emphasised the Maltese MEP.
Dr Sant said balance in state budgets should fully include on the expenditures side the underwriting of shortfalls between outgo and ingo over basic pension payments and revenues. This would necessarily entail a radical revision of budgetary strategies by way of spending priorities, implying a greater emphasis on investment and on a modernisation of social welfare delivery, plus a reengineering of taxation.
Maltese Version – IL-GVERNIJIET EWROPEJ GĦANDHOM JIGGARANTIXXU PENSJONIJIET SOSTENIBBLI
Alfred Sant, Kap tad-delegazzjoni Maltija Laburista fil-Parlament Ewropew qal li l-gvernijiet Ewropej għandhom jiggarantixxu pensjonijiet adegwati u sostenibbli u fejn ikun hemm żbilanċ bejn dħul u ħruġ, joħorġu d-differenza kull sena mill-baġit tal-gvern.
Dr Sant qal dan fid-dibattitu ‘Il-futur tal-pensjonijiet: il-ġlieda kontra l-privatizzazzjoni u t-tisħiħ tas-sistemi tas-sigurta` soċjali’
“Fil-fehma tiegħi, is-soluzzjonijiet ma għandhomx ikunu bbażati biss fuq iż-żieda tal-eta` tal-irtirar taċ-ċittadini u fuq żieda fil-kontribuzzjonijiet. Lanqas m’għandu jsir aktar privatizzazzjoni ta’ partijiet tas-sistema tal-pensjonijiet. Dan tal-aħħar għandu jitqies bħala parti integrali tal-impenn pubbliku fi ħdan il-baġit tal-istat, bl-ogħla prijorita` tingħata lil dawk l-aktar vulnerabbli. Dan il-prinċipju huwa parti mill-wirt Ewropew l-aktar wiesa’ tal-front soċjali u aċċettat kemm mill-politiċi tax-xellug u anki tal-lemin, minn Bismarck għal Willy Brandt. Ma għandux ikun abbandunat.”
Dr Sant qal li l-mistoqsijiet dwar pensjonijiet sostenibbli u adegwati għandhom l-ewwel jiġu solvuti fuq bażi nazzjonali, qabel ma jkunu realistikament mwieġba fuq bażi Ewropea.
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