One additional leave for employees in 2018
The government has begun implementing its promise on public holidays falling on a weekend. With the first phase this year, an additional day of leave will be added on to an employee’s leave days.
Discussions are ongoing with the social partners on further implementation of this proposal.
The minimum wage agreement aims to improve the living conditions of the workers and their families. The agreement reached this year stipulates that workers on the minimum wage benefit from a €3 increase in their second year of employment and another €3 in their third year. The agreement also lays down a supplement linked with the Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA).
Tax refund for all workers earning under €60,000
A tax reduction for all workers, including those workers who do not earn enough to pay tax, will also be implemented as per the government’s electoral pledge. The reduction will apply to everyone earning less than €60,000.
All workers, full-time or parttime, will receive a one-off cheque varying between €40 and €68, according to the gross income of the person, taking into account the person’s marital status as well as whether the person in question is a parent.
This measure will cost €10.6 million, and 200,000 people will benefit from it.
The Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) has also been set at €1.75 per week.
Pension increase
For the third year running, the government will increase pensions with every person receiving a contributory or non-contributory pension getting a raise of €2 per week. Over 90,000 people will benefit from this measure, which will cost €9 million.
An adjustment on the removal of tax on pensions was also announced. In 2017, 9,000 pensioners stopped paying tax. The measure will continue next year as planned and the amount of income that is not taxed will grow to €13,200.
Service pensions will increase by €200. This measure will see 4,500 persons benefit and will cost €1 million
Persons aged over 75 who still live in their own homes will continue receiving a €300 grant.
Addressing past injustices
The government will continue addressing ‘past injustices’. In the last budget a fund had been established that saw payments made for anomalies that occurred over the years due to changes in the pension system or for other reasons.
Former employees of the Malta Electricity Board and the police force began receiving cheques that they were promised This year, over €11 million will be paid to more than 6,000 beneficiaries or their heirs. Next year, €10.5 million will be given to sections of public workers who in the past did not receive money owed to them.
Government extends in-work benefit
The government has pledged to better weight the in-work benefit scheme, and in cases where one of two parents work, the in-workbenefit will rise from €350 to €450 per child. The minister said that this still means there is a strong incentive for the second parent to enter the workforce, given that the in-work benefit rate would be higher at €1,200 per child.
The reason the government is doing this is so that no family with a child under 16, where at least one parent works full-time earning the minimum wage, will
live in poverty.
The minister announced that the VAT-exempt ceiling for SMEs is being raised from €14,000 to €20,000.
The government will continue its fight against fiscal evasion and fines on cases dealt with in court, as well as those agreed upon out of court, will be increased.
Turning to the tapering of benefits, the minister announced that the waiting period for one to benefit from the aforementioned will decrease from two years living on social benefits to one, in order to speed up the transition from the dependency on benefits to the world of work, he said.
The minister also announced that persons in the Community Worker Scheme will see a €200 increase in their payments each month.
As far as the reform on carer benefits is concerned, the allowance being given to married couples who care for a high-dependency person in their home is to increase by €8.15 per week for every other family member if the married person loses their right to another social benefit if they are entitled to an increased allowance.
Reimbursement for adoption expenses
From next year, the government will be offering up to €10,000 in aid to help pay for some of the expenses, including travel, that prospective adoptive parents undergo in order to adopt.
Currently, orphans are given an allowance up to the age of 16, after which they receive a higher, special allowance up to the age of 21, provided they are not in employment. The government deems this to be unfair and as of 2018, all orphans aged 16 to 21 will be receiving the special allowance, regardless of whether or not they are working.
The government also announced an increase in the Foster Care Allowance, which will be raised from €70 to €100 per week.
Those paying maintenance to their spouse and children will have such payments listed as income on the means test for the Karta r-Roza. As matters stand if they supersede the scale according to the test, they will not be able to receive free medicine and the government is to take steps to remove this anomaly.
The Drug Addicts’ Allowance, for persons following a rehabilitation programme will increase from €30 to €40 a week.
More homes for persons with disability
The government plans to build three more homes for adults with disability, the minister announced. He also said that work will begin to demolish and construct the residential home and day centre in Marsascala. The project will take around four years to complete.
The government has also pledged to continue improving the facilities at St Vincent de Paul. Such works include the continuation of the three-year project on the Ruzar Briffa building, which should result in increased space, he said. Other works include the rehabilitation of the ward for patients suffering from dementia, and the redevelopment of the pharmacy.
The government will also incentivise private projects and publicprivate partnerships when it comes to residential services for elderly persons in need of longterm care.