‘The sooner we agree on a way forward on Brexit the better’
Malta may be smaller than the Isle of Wight, let alone Wales, but its economy is booming. Chief reporter Martin Shipton tells how the former colony is relishing a leadership role as we head for the EU exit door
AARON Farrugia looks younger than his 37 years and describes himself as an optimist on his Twitter profile.
As Malta’s Parliamentary Secretary for EU Funds, it’s easy to understand why the cares of office sit lightly on his shoulders: the country’s future looks bright.
Malta may be the smallest EU member state, with a population of less than 450,000, but it has the highest growth rate, at 5%, and is moving into surplus.
The population is very politically engaged, with a general election turnout of 90% considered on the low side.
Most people remain tribally loyal to one or other of the only two political parties with representation in Parliament: Labour and the Nationalists.
After one quarter of a century out of power, Labour won the election in 2013 under its young leader Joseph Muscat and was re-elected for a second term in June.
The Maltese went to the polls just five days before our own general election, so it’s hardly surprising that it got little mention in our media.
Muscat’s Government has been described as a Blairite tribute act, and it has successfully combined an enhancement of social protections like childcare with policies designed to attract inward investment.
And recently, in a country where not long ago the Catholic Church held enormous influence in the social sphere, legislation was brought in to enable same-sex marriage.
After the UK voted for Brexit, it decided not to take up the Presidency of the European Council it was due to hold. For the first six months of 2017, however, the Presidency was taken by Malta.
Using language that would be anathema to the current UK Government, Malta set out in advance its approach to the EU, describing the Single Market as “the Union’s greatest asset”.
Farrugia, whose electoral district includes the vibrant city centre of the nation’s capital Valletta, spoke to me at his office in the 16th century Government building known as the Auberge d’Aragon, built by the Knights of St John who ruled Malta from 1530 until 1798.
He said: “We belong in the EU and, if anything, now that Malta has been a member for 13 years, we’re moving from being a new member to being a member who can give leadership in the EU.
“We are already doing that in the euro zone. Malta has seen big economic growth over the last four to five years, and that’s how Malta is giving leadership.”
Farrugia said it was “high time” to shape the post-Brexit EU: “At the moment there are Brexit negotiations between Mr David Davis and Mr Michel Barnier, but the member states are not involved directly with that.”
Asked how a tiny country like Malta could realistically expect to have a leadership role, Farrugia said: “We’re showing that tangibly in the euro zone. Malta has seen the biggest economic growth in the last five years. The other day I saw a press conference given by the Italian Finance Minister, who was happy with growth of 1%-1.5%, when ours is 5%.
“We’re doing that on the financial level, so we can help the Union shape its future. So we can discuss President Macron’s vision of a harmonised Union involving defence, fiscal regimes and so on. We might not agree on some of them, but we should definitely have our own voice.
“Yes, we’re quite small – but we’re quite effective. We’ve shown this. When we held the EU Presidency, our role was praised from all levels of government and EU institutions. We had no delusions of grandeur – we had our goals and we achieved them. I think a small country like Malta can be an honest broker and a good team player.”
Brexit makes Farrugia very sad: “I feel attached to Britain, members of my family live in Britain and I can relate to them. I would have liked to see Britain stay in the EU, if anything because Malta and the UK’s history goes back many years. We’re Commonwealth members, I think we share the same sense of humour. I didn’t agree with Brexit, because for the next few years, Britain will have to abide by the rules of the EU without having any say. The sooner we agree on a way forward the better for both Britain and the EU.
“It is understandable that the EU does not want to give Britain a very good deal, because that would trigger other countries to consider they could pull out and get a good deal too.
“Also, there is a feeling that the British Government was not ready for this transition, and I think that is so. The idea of David Cameron was that they would have a referendum and stay in the EU. But they were caught off-balance.
“Let’s be positive and think that the European Council meeting in December will give us added value to finalise a deal in the coming months. The best outcome apart from staying in the EU from Britain’s point of view would be a deal like Norway and Switzerland have, in the European Economic Area, but that definitely isn’t what Theresa May wants.
“I understand that an email exists setting out some EU proposals about what a future deal might look like, but that hasn’t been widely shared yet.
“If there is a hard Brexit, it will be ‘lose. lose’.”