Empty slogans

A while back, the Labour Party switched slogans. Just when we had about enough of "Switzerland in the Mediterranean", we had to switch gears to the equally abstract "Partnership with the EU". Wonder of wonders, the party has lately been regressing back to the tired old phrase.

When Jimmy Magro, its secretary general, was seen in public during an EU membership debate wearing a "Switzerland in the Med" T-shirt last weekend, the conclusion was inescapable: the party had overstocked the old-logo T-shirts, and the storeroom manager had talked the party back to the old motto!

How else can one rationalise the move back to the Swiss in the Med concept by the secretary general when other senior party members, including Dr Sant and Dr Vella, have lately been avoiding the term like the plague and speaking only of partnership? Of course, there are those who will not take seriously this story of a crisis in the glass-palace storeroom, but who will argue that there is internal confusion in the MLP and perhaps even dissent regarding the new slogan.

To date there is nothing in the party`s philosophy beyond a crude and unscrupulous rejection of EU membership. Unless they add some meat to the bare bones of their slogans, it will be even more obvious that they are just a bunch of opportunists and scaremongers. What precisely is the Labour Party proposing instead of membership? What will a Labour government propose to the EU? What will it demand, and what will it give up in exchange? Whose interests will it tread on? Why don`t the top Labourites just roll up their sleeves and design their own blueprint, showing how they will convert the Swiss or whatever model to the Maltese reality?

Without an alternative road map of its own, the Labour Party will come to the referendum naked. To add further insult, it has already spat in the face of the voting public, declaring up front that it will ignore their judgment. In effect it is saying to the electorate: we cannot come up with a counterproposal, but we will pursue whatever we want regardless of what you decide in the referendum.

Another problem with their slogan is that the Maltese word for partnership happens to be the same as for membership - shubija means membership as much as it means partnership - so they have to confine themselves to a phrase in English! Of course, if there is no substance behind the slogan, it makes little difference what language you use. As long as you dress up the slogan with an endless blitz of false statements, half truths and scares.

The Opposition leader must think that his job description requires him only to be contrary just for the sheer pleasure of it, to hell with the facts and with the country`s interests. No wonder, especially if you once boasted that you`d sign a pact with the devil if it wins you the election. Sure as hell, you`ll play hard and fast with the facts, and carry on EU-bashing as if it were one big joyride.

Why else would they keep repeating the same lies? Like the way Romano Prodi`s words were bent and twisted into the prediction that the EU will turn us back into a fortress. Or that Lm20 million of Maltese taxpayers` money has been used to implement the acquis, when they know very well that the bulk of the money comes from the EU`s pre-accession funds which would not have been available under the non-membership Labour route.

When they make some half-hearted attempt to add specific detail to their non-membership position, the results are awful. At one point, there was the suggestion that Malta should remain outside the EU but would somehow foist itself into the trade agreements that the EU has with other countries. No wonder we never heard that one again: outside the EU, there is no mechanism that would let Malta in on the EU`s trade agreements, unless one adopts the same conditions of membership which Dr Sant claims he does not want.

Consequently, under his route Malta would have to negotiate its own individual agreements, from a position of weakness since our market is of little interest to other countries, while their market is much more significant to us. Furthermore, it could take 20 or 30 years to negotiate the full repertoire of agreements that EU membership will give us at one go upon membership.

Inevitably, the Labour position simply degenerates into one where what they really want - and all they can really get - is an association agreement like Tunisia`s or Morocco`s. So much for the vaunted Swiss option, or for the grandiose partnership!

Consumer imports

On external trade, we now have the complete figures for the first quarter of this year. Imported consumer goods reached Lm25.3 million in March, up from Lm24.9 million in March 2001.

While the rise was moderate, what may be more important is that it was the third monthly increase in a row. The change from same-month-last-year had been positive for several months through last October. It turned negative in November and December 2001 in the post September 11 slowdown. With renewed consumer confidence, it has again become positive in January, February and March 2002. In fact, for the complete first quarter, consumer imports were up 6.2 per cent.

Export trends

We now have a clearer picture of the consequences of the worldwide slowdown in international trade. The effect on Malta`s electronics exports (Category 729) was evident starting in the second quarter of 2001, and was felt sharply in the last quarter of the year. The effect extended into the first quarter of 2002, although the impact was less severe. This is encouraging especially in light of indications of a pickup in international demand this year.

Growth in non-electronics exports was at an eight per cent clip in the first nine months of 2001, edging up to nine per cent in the last quarter. These exports went on to increase marginally in the first quarter of this year. Excluding category 729, first quarter domestic exports increased by Lm0.8 million.

Top export gains in the first quarter, in terms of increased sales from the first quarter of 2001, were in printed matter (+ Lm1.6 million), plastics (+ Lm1.1 million), clothing (+ Lm1 million) and food (+ Lm1 million).

The Advisory Council

On May 25, we`ll have the third meeting of the Advisory Council, at the Ministry for Economic Services.

The Malta Enterprise Board (MEB) draws on the Advisory Council of experts for external insight and an international perspective on the best strategy for economic growth and for the attraction of foreign direct investment. The Advisory Council is made up of eminent persons with a Maltese connection, from the world of business, finance and academia. The council`s main function is to provide input into MEB strategy and to generate leads and connections to fdi opportunities.

Previous meetings discussed specific policy matters, like the Business Promotion Act and the soon-to-be-published Industrial Policy Document. The meetings were the forum for external assessment and outside recommendations on methods to enhance Malta`s attractiveness as an investment location.

The Malta Enterprise Board is working to co-ordinate the activities of MDC, METCO and IPSE. Plans are being developed for their overdue integration in the near future into a streamlined institution with sharpened effectiveness. At its third meeting the Advisory Council will discuss the envisaged restructuring and rationalisation of the three bodies. Improvements in efficiency and the elimination of duplication will result in the provision of better service to the business and industrial community.

On the same day a complementary meeting will be held with top industrialists from companies operating in Malta. The aim is to assess additional foreign investment prospects and to complement the advisory board made up of eminent and successful persons of Maltese extraction, with successful business executives who already operate in Malta. We are trying to leave no stone unturned in finding ways to improve Malta`s attractiveness and effectiveness in its investment promotion strategy.