Following a short and fierce campaign, the Maltese will decide between the Labour Party, led by the current Prime Minister, Joseph Muscat and The National Force led by Simon Busuttil, leader of the Nationalist Party as the country holds the general election this Saturday 3rd of June.

According to the latest opinion polls, the undecided and those who refuse to state their intentions that in all account for around 22% of the electorate will decree the final verdict of this election. However eliminating this 22% out of the analysis, the Labour Party is expected to achieve 52.7%, the Nationalist Party 46.3% whilst the other minor parties will garner 1%.

The election campaign ended on Thursday at midnight with massive mass meetings held by the two main political parties during which both leaders reiterated their key messages.

The Prime Minister highlighted the milestones achieved by his government whilst admitted the mistakes done and pledged that he has learned from those mistakes. He compared his party that put forward concrete proposals with the Nationalist Party that has banked its campaign “on criticism and negativity”.

On the other hand, the Leader of the Nationalist Party, Simon Busuttil vowed that he would purge the country from corruption and scandals that have grasped the governance of Malta in the last four years. This claim was made in the light of the serious allegations that Michelle Muscat, the wife of the Prime Minister Joseph Muscat owns a secret company registered in Panama.

Other claims involve Keith Schembri, the Chief of Staff in the Office of the Prime Minister who besides owning a secret company in Panama as Konrad Mizzi, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office, is also involved in alleged cases of bribery through the sale of Maltese passports and other shady personal business done in the recent past.

“We need to lead the country by example. We need to be an example of honesty, the truth, integrity, justice, transparency. Let’s close our EU Presidency by telling the world, Malta has cleaned its name and that we are proud to call ourselves Maltese”, the Nationalist Party leader said.

During the last week of the election campaign, the Prime Minister, Joseph Muscat persisted on the key proposals as he emphasized that these will lead to create further wealth among workers, families and pensioners as under his leadership in the last four years, Malta has registered almost full employment and the strongest economic growth ever.

Furthermore, the Prime Minister obtained the support of European left politicians including that of former Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi who addressed the Labour mass meeting during the last Sunday of the campaign. Renzi who is a personal friend of Muscat said, “Muscat achieved better results than me” referring to the extraordinary results attained in the Maltese economy combined with very low statistics of unemployed people. He appealed to those gathered to choose Joseph Muscat and retain this positive season for Malta.

In a recorded message, broadcast just two days prior to the general election, even the current Italian Prime Minister, Paolo Gentiloni praised the Maltese Prime Minister’s skills. He made specific reference to challenging issues such as immigration that Europe is facing and that were aptly tackled by the Prime Minister during the Maltese Presidency of the Council of the European Union.

These international testimonials that also included that of former British Labour Prime Minister Tony Blair all had one common message; to choose Joseph Muscat in the general election of Saturday 3rdJune following the economic success for Malta and in view of the remarkable achievement obtained in civil rights for the LGBTIQ community.

(ITALPRESS/MNA).

Source: medNews

Malta is almost a week away from the general election, instigated by the Opposition Nationalist Party following a number of corruption allegations pointing to people involved in the highest leadership positions of the Labour government.

The strongest accusation directed at the wife of the Prime Minister Joseph Muscat, Michelle Muscat alleges that she has a secret company registered in her name in Panama. Other claims involve Keith Schembri, the Chief of Staff in the Office of the Prime Minister who besides owning a secret company in Panama as Konrad Mizzi, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office, is also  involved in alleged cases of bribery through the sale of Maltese passports and other shady personal business done in the recent past.

According to public opinion surveys, these allegations have already damaged the Labour Party who won the last general election with a staggering 36,000-vote majority; nevertheless, a decline in votes will not be enough for the opposition Nationalist Party to win the election on the 3rd of June. The ongoing surveys place the Labour Party ahead with 8 percent although 20 percent of the electorate is refusing to respond or is still undecided.

Two magisterial inquiries following the Nationalist Party allegations are currently taking place; the parties concerned have categorically denied these accusations.

One of the inquiry is about ‘Egrant’ a secret company registered in Panama, and alleged to belong to Michelle Muscat, wife of the Maltese Prime Minister Joseph Muscat. Following these allegations, the Prime Minister himself immediately ordered an investigation and called an early election, nine months ahead of the five-year electoral mandate that would have expired in March 2018.

The international publication IntelligenceOnline.com reported that the whistleblower in the Egrant allegations, a Russian national, was connected to these allegations against Michelle Muscat.

Addressing the media, Prime Minister Joseph Muscat said he is conscious of information from foreign intelligence services, alleging Russian meddling in the run-up of Malta’s general election. IntellegenceOnline.com reports that British and American agencies are “concerned about possbile interference in the Maltese election process.”

Muscat said he could not state, as claimed in the international online magazine whether the whistleblower in the Egrant allegations was connected to these claims. “All I know is that we were told to expect retribution for our role in hastening the visa waiver programme for Ukraine and after we stopped the refuelling of a Russian warship on the way to Syria,” Muscat said. 

Since the beginning of the electoral campaign, the Opposition Leader Simon Busuttil has submitted evidence to the two investigating magistrates respectively conducting the Egrant case and the allegations of bribery by Keith Schembri. The allegations of bribery by Keith Schembri include kick-offs made through the sale of passports operated by the audit company Nexia BT led by Brian Tonna who is a personal friend to both Schembri and the Prime Minister. Another allegation concerns a transaction of 650,000 euros made by Adrian Hillman, former Managing Director of Allied Newspapers to Schembri’s secret company registered in the British Virgin Islands.

These accusations are playing a key role in the campaign of the Nationalist Party led by the leader Simon Busuttil who is even making continuous claims that the institutions of the country have failed following the lack of action to take the necessary steps by the Police Force in the light of the ongoing allegations of corruption and bribery.

This unwarranted situation has led the Opposition Leader Simon Busuttil to establish a National Force to combat corruption in this general election.  Joining him in this fight are two former Labour Members of Parliament: Marlene Farrugia, who founded the Democratic Party, and her partner Godfrey Farrugia, former whip of the Labour parliamentary group. Both are contesting the general elections for the Democratic Party but under the Nationalist Party list.

The proposals of both major parties is being based on a competition between them concentrating on who will reduce the most taxes in the various sectors including workers, employers and pensioners and how to strengthen the economy without harming the environment.

The issue of Brexit is also on the agenda of the Labour Party, as it is the only party proposing to set up a task force to ensure the maximum advantage for Malta out of this situation. Reports in the international media are indicating Malta as the ideal county to win over i-gaming companies after leaving Gibraltar. However, Muscat’s plans can be damaged as all international eyes are following closely the corruption allegations with Muscat accusing the Nationalist Opposition of being the culprits in disseminating such bad reputation for Malta.

In a country where corruption is tainting its leadership, simultaneously Malta in the past four years has recorded the lowest unemployment rate and is among the EU countries with fewer people registering for work, has an absolute record of employment and for the first time recorded surplus in government finances after 25 years. Therefore, the indications so far remain in favour of a majority for the Labour Party despite losing votes that will not be enough to reverse the outcome of the last general election of 2013 in favour of the Nationalist Party.

(ITALPRESS/MNA).

Source: medNews

Amidst a fierce campaign leading to the general election on the 3rd of June, the Labour Government and the Opposition Nationalist Party have found themselves united on a common front.

Both the Government and the Opposition have taken the same position, categorically rejecting an extensive report nicknamed ‘Malta Files’ issued by the network of investigative journalists, ‘The European Investigative Collaboration (EIC)’. This report describes Malta as a base for rich people and oligarchs to exploit the taxation system consequently avoiding and evading taxes due.

The Prime Minister Joseph Muscat and the Opposition Leader Simon Busuttil insist that there is nothing illegal in the Maltese tax system. Moreover, they maintained that the information published in the Malta Files is public information and accessible through the register of the companies held by the Malta Financial Services Authority.

The Maltese taxation system charges 35% tax rate to companies but permits its foreign shareholders to claim a rebate of 85% on tax already paid. Through this system, Malta approximately generates over € 240 million per year.

Both the Maltese Prime Minister Joseph Muscat and the Opposition Leader Simon Busuttil rebuffed accusations that in Malta there are offshore companies.

In the past days, whilst addressing a joint press conference together with the Prime Minister of Malta, the Finance Minister of Malta, Edward Scicluna described this attack as ‘bullying’ from other European countries who are envious of the Maltese taxation system and the regulatory framework for remote gaming. They appealed for a unified position against this unprecedented assault to defend Malta and safeguard investments and employment.

Minister Scicluna affirmed that neither the European Commission nor the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OSCE) has ever criticized the taxation system in Malta, besides the fact that no reference was made to Malta in the recent report on the avoidance of taxation systems in the EU.

Unofficial sources in Brussels, have declared that France and Germany are behind these claims on Malta’s taxation system. France is currently experiencing a period where it wants to develop and strengthen its financial sector. 

The French authorities want to lure big companies willing to leave the UK following Brexit and so exploit mechanisms that have brought success in the financial services sector in small countries such as Malta and Luxembourg.

On several occasions, Germany requested Maltese authorities to provide information on particular German companies, and the Maltese authorities concerned responded with full documentation. The Maltese Minister of Finance was recently in Berlin where he met with the media and explained that there is no secrecy in the Maltese tax system.

The Maltese Prime Minister declared that he would defend the interests of Malta against all odds, “Malta is a full-time member of the EU, not part-time. And a basic point of the single market is freedom of establishment. So I have no difficulty to defend the system. We’re not alone in the European Council – a prime minister I speak to, told me ‘the day they touch our taxation is the day we’ll say no to everything.”

According to the transparency criteria applied by the Tax Justice Network, Malta ranks at number 50 whilst Luxembourg and Germany are at 54 and 55 respectively whereas Panama and Switzerland both hit the bottom of the list.

(ITALPRESS/MNA).

Source: medNews

In the presence of King Mohammed VI, agreements were signed concerning the beginning of the project of the Nigeria-Morocco pipeline. During the ceremony held at the Royal Palace in Rabat, the Moroccan Minister for Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Nasser Bourita, illustrated the main lines of this south-south energy development and cooperation project. Once realized, the pipeline will have a positive impact on over 300 million Africans, enabling acceleration of electrification projects in the western part of the continent. The beginning of such collaboration had been discussed during an official visit to King Mohammed VI in Nigeria last December. The agreement for launching feasibility studies for the gas pipeline was signed by the National Hydrocarbons and Mines Office and, for Nigeria, by the National Petroleum Company. Nigeria, which has the highest GDP in the continent, is the 22nd global gas producer, the fifth global exporter and the 1st exporter in Africa. The gas pipeline project would be 4,000 kilometers long and would cross 15 West African countries, then move on to Europe via the Strait of Gibraltar. 

Morocco, in continental terms, is a country with recognized infrastructure capacity, thanks also to the large logistic port projects of Tanger Med and solar energy, with the Noor central station in Ouarzazate. Western Africa has an important energy potential, with almost 31% of natural gas reserves in the continent (3.6 billion cubic meters). The gas pipeline project would allow all the countries in the West African Economic Community (CEDEAO) to dispose of energy with a low environmental impact (as it produces less greenhouse gases than coal and oil).

(ITALPRESS/MNA).

Source: medNews

At the conclusion of the meeting of the Council for the Internationalization of the Slovenian Economy, Foreign Minister Karl Erjavec announced the opening of three new diplomatic offices in the United Arab Emirates, Morocco and Bulgaria. At present, the Slovenian diplomatic-consular network is made up of 53 seats.

(ITALPRESS/MNA).

Source: medNews

The prestigious international tennis tournament, Kinder+Sport which is sponsored by Kinder Ferrero, will be staged on our shores as part of an international circuit that will touch nine nations in the coming months. The ‘Malta’ tournament will be held in two stages between May 20 and May 28 at the Marsa Sports Club and between July 3 and July 9 at the Pembroke Tennis Club. The winners of both tournaments will fly to Rome to represent Malta in the International Masters between August 20 and August 25 2017. Anyone can participate and there is no registration fee. Participants will compete in age group which range between U10- category to U 16.  During the past editions, the finalists can the opportunity to meet several tennis personality including Francesca Schiavone, Flavia Pennetta, Sara Errani, Jo Wilfried Tsonga, Fabio Fognini, Simone Bolelli, Corrado Barazzutti and Nicola Pietrangeli. The Kinder+Sport Tennis Trophy is being organised by the Italian Tennis Federation (FIT) in conjunction with Kinder Ferrero Group and supported locally by the Malta Tennis Federation. This initiative first brought up by former Italian champion Rita Grande, has been extended to the international circuit this year with similar tournaments being held in Austria, Bulgaria, Germany, Italy, Israel Luxembourg, Monaco, Hungry and Malta, before the final tournament held in Rome to determine the overall winners. “This is another feather in the Maltese Tennis Federation’s cap, an initiative born out of the close collaboration between the Maltese Federation and its Italian counterpart. I would like to thank the Italian Tennis Federation and Kinder Ferrero for bringing the tournament in Malta. I would like to convey my best wishes to all participants,” the Malta Tennis Federation president Dr David Farrugia Sacco said. On may obtain more details by sending an email on info”maltatennisfederation.com or visit the Federation website (www.maltatennisfederation.com)
(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews

LUISS Guido Carli, in collaboration with the Terzo Pilastro Foundation – Italy launches “Progetto Mediterraneo”: a support initiative for students from the Near and Middle East, including refugees which, thanks to the agreement with Petra University of Jordan and the University of Malta, will have the opportunity to attend university courses in the Departments of the Free International University of Social Studies. The “Mediterranean Project” was presented in the new LUISS premises of Villa Blanc, in the presence of Foreign Minister Angelino Alfano, President of the Third Pillar Foundation Italy and Mediterranean Emmanuele F.M. Emanuele, President of LUISS Emma Marcegaglia, Executive Vice President Luigi Serra, Rector Paola Severino, General Manager Giovanni Lo Storto and Marwan El Muwalla, President of the University of Petra, Jordan. Connected with Skype, the President of the Republic of Malta, Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca.

“It is an initiative that puts LUISS as a privileged interlocutor between the two sides of the Mediterranean, strengthening dialogue and knowledge among young talents coming from neighboring countries but too often perceived far and different. The future of new generations also lies in the possibility of being connected and united in a common development plan. The objective of the Project is to attract young people of quality, laying the foundations for a new dimension of exchange and cooperation, in a strategic high potential area like the Mediterranean. Students will be given the opportunity to study at LUISS thorugh scholarships, and return to their countries as members of the future ruling class”, says LUISS President Emma Marcegaglia.

Twenty young people will be joining the prestigious initiative. A first phase, which has already started, involves the selection of young talents from Petra University, from different nationalities, who will be able, from the next academic year (2017/18), to attend a three-year degree course at LUISS in collaboration with the Jordanian Faculty of Administrative & Financial Sciences. The Mediterranean project will also be joined by Morocco with a mobility initiative between LUISS and Universities of Cadi Ayyad, Mohammed de Rabat University and the Fès Euro-Mediterranean University, which will include the selection of at least three Moroccan students who may, starting from 2019/20, attend a MA degree in LUISS.

“The great challenge facing the” Mediterranean Project “promoted by the Third Pillar Foundation together with LUISS University is to strengthen Euro-Mediterranean political and economic cooperation through a common educational path for young people, focusing on dialogue and on cooperation at the highest levels of training and research, as well as to encourage the meeting between economic operators, institutions and representatives of Universities in order to create a knowledgeable management class aware of the opportunities arising from a greater interaction between economic, social, cultural and political aspects of the area. Once the graduate course is completed, the 20 selected students will be provided with basic skills to continue their studies in the country of origin and become the managers of the future, assuming that the culture and knowledge of the principles of finance and business techniques are the basis for the revival of the Mediterranean area”, says Emmanuele Emanuele, President of the Third Pillar Foundation – Italy and the Mediterranean.

(ITALPRESS/MNA).

Source: medNews

According to MONSTAT (National Statistical Office of Montenegro) data, 27.3 thousand tourist presences were recorded in March, +10.3% over the same month last year. The number of overnight stays was slightly over 70 thousand (+11% more than the same month of 2016), of which 67.5% were made by foreign tourists.

The highest number of overnight stays were made by tourists from Serbia (17.6%), Albania (8.8%), Russia (7.9%), China (6.9%), France (5.9% ), Bosnia and Herzegovina (5.2%), Italy (4.5%), Croatia (3.9%) and Turkey (3.9%). 63.2% of the overnight stays were carried out at the coastal areas.

(ITALPRESS/MNA).

Source: medNews

 This past year has demonstrated once again that the scope and scale of the challenges faced by the Euro-Mediterranean region relating to security, migration, unemployment and climate change require swift collective and concerted responses. The Union for the Mediterranean (UfM) works proactively to achieve greater levels of integration and cooperation in the region through a specific methodology that has yielded positive results in terms of political dialogue and the implementation of region-wide initiatives in which young people play a key role.

Under the active leadership of the UfM Co-Presidency – held by the EU and Jordan – and with the active involvement of the UfM Member States, 2016 has marked a turning point for the institution at the political and operational levels. The UfM 2016 Annual Report showcases 10 new labelled projects during the last year aimed at SME development, job creation, women’s empowerment, renewable energy and depollution, infrastructure development and education. Altogether, the UfM adds up to 47 projects with a budget of €5.3 billion. The tangible positive impact from the first wave of projects is already visible involving over 200,000 beneficiaries in the region, mainly women and young people.

UfM initiatives aim to consolidate human development (26 projects) and promote sustainable development (21 projects) as the main drivers for stability and integration in the region.

The first pillar of action includes initiatives linked to job creation, entrepreneurship and gender equality, such as the Mediterranean Initiative for Jobs (Med4Jobs). More than 50,000 women benefit from women’s empowerment programmes. In terms of sustainable development, in 2016 the UfM launched emblematic projects such as the depollution of Lake Bizerte, under the EU’s Horizon 2020 Initiative for a cleaner Mediterranean Sea, and the SEMed Private Renewable Energy Framework (SPREF), developed in cooperation with the EBRD to encourage the growth of private markets for renewable energy in Egypt, Jordan, Morocco and Tunisia.

(ITALPRESS).

Source: medNews

Stability Program 2017-2020 and Spain’s National Reform Program 2017 have been approved. The positive revision of growth forecasts for the coming years is among the main innovations of the Stability Program. In fact, the Spanish economy is expected to increase by 2.7% in 2017 (2.5% in the previous estimates) and by 2.5% in 2018 and by 2.4% in 2019 and 2020.

In addition, the unemployment rate will be around 11.2% at the end of 2020. This forecast, in the event of occurrence, would represent a decrease of 16 percentage points compared to the maximum achieved during the crisis period. It should be noted that at the present time (1st quarter 2017) unemployment rate is 18.75%. The government plans to create 500,000 jobs per year, reaching a total of 20.5 million workers in the coming years.

The Stability Program also keeps the fiscal consolidation targets set for Spain; therefore, the public deficit should amount to 3.1% of the GDP in 2017; to 2.2% in 2018 and to 1.3% in 2019. It should be noted that the expected deficit target for 2020 is 0.5% of GDP, which would allow Spain to reach an almost balanced budget.

(ITALPRESS/MNA).

Source: medNews