Media Centre empty as EU Presidency comes to a close

On 1 January 2017, Malta had become the smallest country ever to take on the rotating presidency of the Council of the EU, which President Marie Louise Coleiro Preca described as ‘’historic” and “a celebration of our shared European identity and values”.

However, five months and €40 million later, the general election has overshadowed Malta’s EU Presidency, with the latter becoming something of an afterthought. The country’s six month rotating presidency will end in June.

The Palace’s staterooms had been converted to a media centre which could cater up to 250 journalists, have become something more akin to a ghost town.

The media centre houses workstations for European delegates, bilateral meeting rooms, and temporary offices for Maltese government ministers hosting individual meetings.

Around 20,000 delegates and 1,500 journalists were expected descend on Malta between January and June, with 200 meetings, 16 of the European Council, scheduled to take place.

Speaking last January, Parliamentary secretary for the EU presidency Ian Borg said that he, “was convinced that with these two entities’ technical expertise, Malta will be well placed to offer the best service and spread its message around Europe as effectively as possible.”

Prime Minister Joseph Muscat had said that the country’s “vision is in no way hampered by the limitations, or preconceptions related to the fact that Malta is the EU’s smallest state. Success and size are not mutually exclusive”.

However, it remains to be seen how many people actually remember the six ambitious priorities set out by the country; migration, security, single market, social inclusion, neighbourhood policy and maritime affairs.

The focus appears to have shifted on Malta’s tax policies, which were discussed at the informal Meeting of Economic and Financial Affairs Ministers (Ecofin) in Malta, after the Malta Files reports were featured in this year’s electoral campaign.

It is important to note that the country’s tax structure abides that all regulations and was given the blessing by the EU.

Malta’s EU Presidency came at a time of uncertainty on the European stage with triggering of Brexit; and the Dutch and French elections.

Dr Muscat had called on the EU to take bold decisions or it would be forced to make even bolder, or radical, decisions in the future.

Nevertheless, it appears that discussions on EU reform have momentarily stalled, even though the election favoured pro-EU parties, and the Declaration of Rome, which established the EU’s vision of unity for the next ten years, was signed by the 27 member states.