Europe’s challenges will affect Malta during 2016

Malta’s future in 2016 depends much on the way Europe will meet its challenges on immigration, terrorism, the Eurozone’s performance and the UK/EU negotiations which will lead to the Referendum on UK membership. The UK has for long been one of our longest business partners and Malta will be affected should the UK leave the European Union. Alfred Sant, Head of the Labour Delegation at the European Parliament, told journalist Bryony Bartolo on the TV programme ‘Malta and the European Union’ that events and decisions in Europe in the next months will continue to effect directly Malta and Gozo. Unfortunately, said Dr. Sant, faced by these crises, Europe is losing its unity, and individual member states are taking different stances from that agreed by the EU. It is also worrying that extremist parties, both on the far left and the right side, as is the case in Spain and France, are making breakthroughs at the polls.
Dr. Sant said that Europe still has to agree on one policy on the influx and distribution of more thousands of refugees arriving from North Africa and the Middle East. The eurozone still has to witness the desired results. Unemployment, especially among young people, is still high, despite recent improvements.
Notwithstanding this, said Dr. Sant, Malta’s economy is still thriving and looks to continue on this trend in the next two years. Dr. Sant remarked that two important sectors of the Maltese economy showing continuous improvements in the past years are tourism and Financial Services. ‘The one-size-fits-all policy on taxation will not benefit our strong financial services sector which has developed so rapidly and successfully over the years. It is important that the Maltese Government, the Opposition and all Maltese MEPS in the European Parliament continue to defend Malta’s system of taxation, which is tailored made for our special circumstances. While we should favour transparency in taxation policies, we should continue to defend our national interests’, said Dr. Sant when referring to the recent vote in the European Parliament when all six Maltese MEPs voted against the proposal of harmonisation of taxes among all EU member states.
Quizzed on the negative effects of EU rules on Maltese agriculture and fishing, Dr. Sant noted that the number of fishermen and farmers in the Maltese islands have decreased by half. ‘An average European farmer works 52 hectares of land, while Maltese and Gozitan farmers work an average of one hectare of land. It was always obvious that EU rules would affect negatively our farmers and fishermen. What we must do now is to see how we can cope in the current circumstances, until perhaps the EU changes its stringent rules on this sector for small island state members, which looks very unlikely at the moment.’ said Dr. Sant.
Dr. Sant said that despite the notable progress registered in the last two years, Gozo’s special characteristics calls for special treatment when it comes to the EU’s rules on competition. Gozo’s double insularity needs to be balanced by new economic activity, better IT systems and faster sea connections. This is important to make up for the one-size-fits-all EU rules which cannot benefit Gozo. Ultimately we must strive for the EU’s special treatment for Gozo. Government must be lauded for the new iniatitives taken for special investments in Gozo, like that in the health sector. Such initiatives, irrespective of EU rules, can generate more job opportunities for the young in Gozo, said Dr. Sant.

You can follow Dr Sant’s inverview on this link:

Maltese Version – ‘L-ISFIDI EWROPEJ SE JAFFETTWAW LIL MALTA FL-2016’

Il-futur ta’ Malta fl-2016 jiddependi ħafna mill-mod kif l-Ewropa taffaċċja l-isfidi dwar l-immigrazzjoni, it-terroriżmu, l-andament taż-żona ewro u n-negozjati mar-Renju Unit li se jwasslu għal referendum dwar is-sħubija ta’ dan il-pajjiż fl-Unjoni. Malta ilha żmien twil tagħmel kummerċ mar-Renju Unit u jekk dan il-pajjiż joħroġ barra mill-UE, Malta se tħossha. Dan qalu Alfred Sant fil-programm televiżiv ‘Malta u L-Unjoni Ewropea’. Dr. Sant qal lil ġurnalista Bryony Bartolo li l-avvenimenti u d-deċiżjonijiet li se tieħu l-Ewropa fix-xhur li ġejjin se jaffettwaw direttament lil Malta u lil Għawdex. Dr Sant qal li sfortunatament, iffaċċjata b’dawn il-kriżijiet, l-Ewropa mhux qed tibqa’ magħquda u l-istati membri individwali qed jieħdu pożizzjonijiet differenti minn dawk tal-UE. Huwa inkwetanti li partiti estremi, kemm tax-xellug u kemm tal-lemin estrem, qed jiksbu r-riżultati fl-elezzjonijiet. Hekk ġara fi Spanja u fi Franza.
Dr Sant qal li l-Ewropa għad trid issib qbil rigward il-politika u t-tqassim ta’ eluf ta’ immigranti li qed jaslu mill-Afrika ta’ Fuq u mil-Lvant Nofsani. Iż-żona ewro għad trid tara r-riżultat mixtieq. Il-qgħad, speċjalment bejn iż-żgħażagħ, għadu għoli ħafna minkejja li l-affarijiet tjiebu.
Dr Sant qal li minkejja dan kollu, l-ekonomija ta’ Malta sejra tajjeb u se tibqa’ fuq din il-linja għas-sentejn li ġejjin. Dr Sant semma kif żewġ setturi importanti għall-ekonomija Maltija – it-turiżmu u s-servizzi finanzjarji – baqgħu jissaħħu. Il-politika ta’ ‘one-size-fits all’ fuq it-tassazzjoni mhux se tolqot tajjeb is-settur tas-servizzi finanzjarji f’pajjiżna li tant kiber u kiseb suċċess matul is-snin. Huwa importanti li l-Gvern Malti, l-Oppożizzjoni u l-Membri Parlamentari Ewropej kollha jibqgħu jiddefendu s-sistema ta’ tassazzjoni ta’ Malta, għax hija mfassla apposta għaċ-ċirkostanzi speċjali ta’ pajjiżna. ‘Għalkemm għandna nkunu favur it-trasparenza fil-politika ta’ tassazzjoni, għandna nibqgħu niddefendu l-interessi nazzjonali tagħna.’ qal Dr Sant meta rrefera għall-vot li ttieħed riċentement fil-Parlament Ewropew u li fih is-sitt Ewroparlamentari Maltin ivvotaw kontra. Il-vot kien dwar il-proposta li jkun hemm armonizzazzjoni fit-taxxi bejn il-pajjiżi tal-UE kollha.
Mistoqsi dwar l-effetti negattivi tar-regoli tal-UE fuq l-agrikoltura u s-sajd Malti, Dr Sant fakkar li n-numru ta’ sajjieda u bdiewa tal-gżejjer Maltin naqas bin-nofs. ‘Bidwi Ewropew normalment jaħdem 53 ettari ta’ art, filwaqt li f’Malta u Għawdex bidwi jaħdem medja ta’ ettaru ta’ art. Minn dejjem kien ovvju li r-regoli tal-UE kienu se jaffettwaw ħażin lil bdiewa u s-sajjieda Maltin. Li rridu nagħmlu issa huwa li naraw x’inhi l-aħjar ħidma fiċ-ċirkostanzi preżenti, sakemm forsi l-UE tbiddel ir-regoli iebsa tagħha għall-istati l-membri ż-żgħar. Dan ma tantx jidher li se jseħħ malajr.’ qal Dr Sant.
Dr Sant qal li minkejja l-progress li rreġistra Għawdex fl-aħħar sentejn, il-gżira Għawdxija teħtieġ trattament speċjali meta jiġu biex ikunu applikati r-regoli tal-UE għall-kompetizzjoni. L-insularita` doppja ta’ Għawdex trid tkun bilanċjata b’attivita` ekonomika ġdida, titjieb fis-sistemi tal-IT u konnessjonijiet bil-baħar. Dawn l-affarijiet huma importanti biex jibbilanċjaw ir-regoli ‘one-size-fits-all’ li jagħmlu l-ħsara lil Għawdex. Irridu naħdmu biex l-UE tagħti trattament speċjali għal Għawdex. Il-Gvern qed jagħmel sew li jieħu inizzjattivi ġodda favur investiment speċjali f’Għawdex, bħal dak tas-settur tas-saħħa. Inizjattivi bħal dawn, irrispettivament mir-regoli tal-UE, joħolqu x-xogħol għaż-żgħażagħ, qal Dr Sant.