The EU is much more than an economic union

When Malta joins the European Union and when it pays its contribution to the Community budget, it will get a net surplus from the EU of around Lm81 million spread over three years. No destructive accounting can change this and those who have joined the chorus of denigrators who wish to whittle this amount to a mere Lm1.5 million a year are not being honest with voters.

They also need to tell voters quickly that in a Euro-Mediterranean Partnership agreement with the EU, which will be the only way out for Malta if it refuses membership, not only will the major costs of membership also be incurred to have complete free trade with the EU, but the amount of financial aid Malta can expect from the EU would be nil or so small that there will be nothing to brag about.

The EU is, however, more than just an economic union and, yes, though the financial package obtained in the negotiations is positive, it is not the be-all and end-all of being an EU member.

The European Movement (Malta) maintains that the European Union is a union of peoples and not just an economic community. Together, Europeans are trying to solve common problems and threats.

Many Maltese may think that they can actually live without the comforts of this solidarity, but this is short-sighted.

We invite readers, therefore, to look at the whole package and to avoid getting lost in a number of dead ends and culs-de-sac. They need to ask questions such as:

¤ Will membership on the whole benefit Malta or not?

¤ Will membership permit the Maltese citizens to enjoy a better, more secure and richer life in the future or will it throw us back a few years?

¤ Is membership in the national interest or not?

If it weren't, the European Movement (Malta) will not be here. Nor would the idea of EU membership enjoy such popularity among Maltese and the rest of the European family.

The European Movement was set up at The Hague in 1948 because an assessment of the pros and cons of European unity showed that unity is infinitely more beneficial.

European unity is not an irrational choice. It is a pragmatic, practical enterprise. It has brought untold benefits to European citizens of an economic and a non-economic nature.

Given all these, how can one argue that it is not beneficial to the Maltese? That is why the opponents of membership have gone into a frenzy, gearing up the scaremongering, priming up their personal aggressiveness, as they did on Xarabank yesterday, to try and drown the discussion of the benefits of membership in a deluge of falsities.

Let us be calm. We appeal to the supporters of membership to remain calm when they argue, respectful of their opponents as well.

We live in a democracy and tempted as we may be by the misbehaviour of others to join the "slanging match", let us keep the unity and long-term prospects of our democratic system constantly in our minds.

Change or die

Economies die if they are not dynamic and if they are unable to respond to changes in the world environment. The Maltese economy needs to change so as to compete, whether we join the EU or not. Only this will secure our jobs and future.

It is Quixotic to keep blowing up irrelevances such as the mass invasion of Sicilians to take our jobs if we join the EU. These distant cousins of the Maltese (the Maltese are probably descended from them) do not even migrate in their own country Italy in search of jobs, let alone how easier they will find it to come to Malta.

Should Malta lose its competitiveness, as it risks doing if it makes a wrong turning in the referendum, then the Maltese will be migrating to distant Australia and Canada, for the EU will not be open to us (unless such desperadoes go there as illegal immigrants!).

In the negotiations Malta secured a safeguard against the unlimited influx of foreign workers. Working here will still require a work permit and that wraps up the issue.

Costs... what costs?

Looking closer at the "costs" of membership, we need to ask a few important questions. Are these real costs? For example, product standards, environmental rules on cleaner air, drinking water and bathing water, limitations on the use of pesticides and artificial fertilizers to eliminate them from the food chain, safety regulations, competition rules and so on, all impose certain adjustment costs and investments.

But in the longer run they are cost-saving measures because they diminish the incidence of certain diseases, which are costly to treat in terms of medical expenses and the loss of human life.

Safety measures on work places lead to less loss of life and fewer man-hours of skilled work lost. Hence employers who bear the costs of the investments benefit from cost savings in the longer run. Workers benefit from safer work and reduced risks to their health.

Once lost, health is not easy to regain. Often, it is impossible to regain. Prevention, as always, is better than cure. What price can one attach to one's health?

Perhaps the market value of the chemicals that make up the human body according to "calculator" economists in the forefront of the campaign against the EU?

A force for peace

The EU is the first community of peoples of its kind in the world that are uniting not only to help each other improve their material and quality of life but also to promote peace.

The EU promotes peace in Europe and in the rest of the world. It stands for freedom, democracy and the rule of law. It believes that conflicts cannot be resolved through the gun.

The peace of Europe has brought enormous economic wealth. Malta's welfare hangs on it. Without the prosperity that the peace of Europe has given rise to, the Maltese would not be able to export so much to Europe.

Nor would we have so many tourists visiting our islands, injecting money in our economy.

Without the peace of Europe there will be less or probably little surplus wealth to invest overseas, such as the investment that Europeans have brought to Malta. It would mean a meaner, leaner life for us. It would mean fewer jobs.

The Maltese must participate in building, strengthening and sustaining lasting peace in Europe because that is where our future lies. Our longer-term future depends on the peace of Europe. We can only ignore this fact at our own expense.

The EU: a force of peace in the Mediterranean

The EU opposes war in Iraq. The EU wants a peaceful, comprehensive settlement of the Middle East problem. The EU supports a negotiated solution to the Cyprus problem.

The EU wants hostilities to end in Algeria. It wants democratic values, human rights and the rule of law to flourish in the Mediterranean countries.

The EU believes that war is not the solution to the problems of the Mediterranean region or, of the world for that matter. It believes that an end to war will bring more prosperity and wealth to the peoples of the Mediterranean region, many of whom still live perilously near or below the poverty line.

Mediterranean stability favours Malta. It lessens the dangers to its security. It leads to more trade and exchanges, increased trade opportunities and jobs.

As an EU member state, Malta will have a voice where it matters on questions of war and peace in the region. It will have through the Euro-Mediterranean Free Trade Area uninhibited access to the Arab markets.

On the other hand to have similar access in a non-membership scenario, Malta will have to negotiate a free trade agreement with each and every Arab country. That will take a long time and effort to realise. With membership it happens soon!

Now what monetary value can one give to the immense opportunities that open up both in the Mediterranean and in Europe as a result of membership to our business community? These calculations never feature in the destructive accounting of the No camp.

Tourism

The longer-term prospects of tourism in the Mediterranean, and in Malta, depend on the maintenance of peace and security in the region. The EU works to secure this. Malta's interest is to be part of that effort.

For Malta tourism equals jobs. Turbulence in the Mediterranean region endangers it. We need to work through the EU for stability in the region. How effective can we be in this if we remain isolated?

Environment

The EU is based on the principle that a cleaner environment contributes to improvements in the quality of life of its citizens. The Maltese will benefit from the EU environmental rules and will obtain the financial help to adjust to them.

The shorter road to a cleaner environment runs through the EU and not through some other form of relationship to it. The EU is the major player in efforts to protect the Mediterranean marine environment.

It alone has the weight to convince states not to turn our sea into a cesspit. Malta's future depends on this as well. How can Malta, its people and economy survive in a polluted Mediterranean environment?

How will our fishing industry, fish farming and tourism survive a polluted Mediterranean?

Malta needs to be in the EU to ensure a strong voice on these environmental matters as well. The Mediterranean environment is also linked intimately to our long-term survival prospects and welfare.

Education

Education is essential for the improvement of skills. Improved skills mean improved incomes for our younger generation. They mean more investment opportunities.

Membership of the EU opens up the possibility of cheaper study and training overseas for a wider circle of young people.

Yesteryear, study abroad was open mainly to those who could afford it and to some who were either intelligent, lucky enough or had the right connections to obtain scholarships.

EU membership improves the number, array and cost of these opportunities. If Malta refuses to join the EU, it would be unable to benefit from these opportunities.

If it stays out, tuition fees will be higher than those charged to EU citizens and Malta will have to pay its way in the EU educational programmes. Turning our backs on membership is a clear loss in this sector as well.

How big would this loss be? What monetary value can one place on it? How will it affect the Maltese economy's growth prospects? How will it affect Malta's attractiveness to foreign investment? How will it affect our ability to keep updating the skills of our young people? How can we keep up with the pace of change?

Citizens of Europe

When Malta joins the EU all the physical frontiers (except the sea separating us from Italy) will come down. We will remain Maltese citizens, proud of our identity and homeland.

But we also become citizens of Europe. We can travel, work, rest, play and visit any part of the EU without restraints or constraints. Home will always be home for us. But Europe will become our larger and wider home.

The feeling of isolation, so natural to an island people, will diminish. The feeling of inclusiveness will be ours. The moral boost cannot be downplayed.

Security of the individual

We often think of the security of the individual as involving defence from the threats of an invading army. It is more than that. It is security from environmental and health threats as well.

It involves securing the individual from the threat of falling into poverty. It is the security that is derived from living a life in greater dignity - not being conned by misleading advertising or labelling, for example.

European countries collaborate to unite their forces in the war against illegal drug and human trafficking. There are a thousand threats in the underworld of crime that threaten the individual, and Europeans work together to provide a stronger shield against them.

Will our lives be less or more secure in the EU or out of it? What monetary benefit can we give to the security that the individual derives from EU membership?

Freedom and democracy

The EU is a community of democratic states, which guarantee individual freedoms and the rule of law. What monetary value do we give to these values? We appreciate their value when we lose them. But let us make sure we never lose them!

The long-term survival of our democratic values and freedoms is guaranteed by EU membership. Staying out will not mean that these freedoms will disappear or be diminished. But the longer-term guarantee that they will not be touched can only be strengthened by EU membership.