The pre-Budget document presented by Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi in August is meant to enlist both support and suggestions from civil society. The exercise in itself is positive, although I fail to see enough leadership and courage in its contents.

Government may want to consult but there exists a cultural block towards true consultation, almost as if ministers are doing us all a favour by publishing documents rather than establishing a lasting and constructive dialogue on the matters that impact our lives.

I have been challenged by this paper's own "Roamer" to produce something meatier other than the critique of the (minuscule) section of the pre-Budget document that dealt with the (remember now) promised rent reform.

I will refrain from producing a full critique of the document since I am only too sure that government will bin our comments on receipt. What I can and will do in this article, though, is give Malta's de facto Finance Minister, Tonio Fenech, three concise tips on what I would do in his position.

Lm9 million for three sectors

First and foremost what the gentleman cannot (and in all fairness should not) do is hand out some unsustainable tax cuts or promise some unrealistic flat taxes - at least not in the short term. Let's all face the music that the PN has composed over the past 18 years - the budgetary position is still very shaky and nobody (including a hypothetical Dr Alfred Sant at Castille) should attempt anything radical just for short-term political "footage".

It is imperative that the budget deficit be reduced further to ensure our smooth entry into the euro mechanism. The price of this fiscal discipline is low or zero growth. That is a reality we must all face, and one that Government will take responsibility for at the next election. However, there are small fiscal manoeuvres that can be made over the short term to give a kick start to certain sectors of the economy that really do need a push.

I would choose three sectors, namely small business, families and tourism. What I would do is allocate an additional Lm9 million, split equally among these sectors in the following fashion. Lm3 million are to be allocated to assist families to have and raise kids.

Mr Fenech will certainly understand me when I insist that young couples are finding it increasingly difficult to have a first child, let alone the second or third. The reason for this is more often than not financial. An allocation of Lm3 million in simple terms works out at almost Lm1,000 per birth.

How the Ministry of Social Policy chooses to allocate the funds is a matter I would not go into - I am sure they have the tools to establish the most efficient way of delivery. What I would insist, though, is that the assistance somehow be means tested and delivered to its recipients in the shortest possible time. This measure may seem to be short-term; however, if we do nothing about this country's plummeting fertility rate now, in 20 years' time I wouldn't want to be Finance Minister, let alone Tonio Fenech.

The second Lm3 million should be allocated towards a serious venture capital fund. Hold on - haven't we all heard that term before? Yes, you are right, we heard it three years ago when former Finance Minister John Dalli "launched" the Venture Technology Fund that never took off; and we heard it again during last year's Budget speech when Finance Minister Gonzi committed a miserly Lm900,00 that have not yet been doled out - they are probably waiting for another report!

Venture capital could be a serious project from Government for this country. More importantly, it can ensure that we retain some of our best entrepreneurial talent. Unfortunately as things stand today, venture capital still remains just a slick buzzword. I would get off my rear end and do something quick!

The third Lm3 million should be an additional allocation to tourism. Let's face it - the industry has faced a dismal five-year period with flat arrivals and falling spending. Industry representatives have called out several times for additional marketing funds. The Greens believe that the country should risk further and give the players a chance to prove themselves once again.

I would allocate Lm2 million of this money to marketing, but would not hand the money to the Malta Tourism Authority.

I would make the funds available directly to industry players in the form of a public-private partnership to sponsor innovative marketing and product development concepts. I would ensure that Gozo is afforded a proportionally larger share of the funds, to assist their reality that is worse than that being faced in Malta. Lm2 million is not much, but it is a start. If the concept works, next year I would find more money.

The other Lm1 million I would (yes, because I am a Green) earmark for the development of trekking as a tourist niche, one we have never as a country properly explored. Part of the funds would go towards building proper walking trails and part can go towards direct promotion.

Believe you me, there are far more people who love a walk than people who love golf. If the idea doesn't work, we would have at least created several footpaths for generations of Maltese to enjoy. Further, I would give this million to environmental NGOs who would spend it wisely - unlike Government, they are all used to working on tight deadlines and even tighter budgets.

Three sources

Where would I get the required Lm9 million? The answer: three separate sources of Lm3 million each. The first source is a hike in the tax rate for banks. Now let's face it, the two leading banks in particular are making enormous amounts of money and a hike in the tax rate from 35% to 40% (that will rake in the required Lm3 million) is not exactly going to bankrupt anyone. This is the Lm3 million that gets allocated to venture capital, a financial product that, after all, local banks have never properly made available on the local market - in all fairness though, they are not venture capital banks.

The second lot of Lm3 million will come from an increase in the Value Added Tax rate on luxury goods from 18% to 20%. I realise that a good number of you may cringe, but I think that if as a country we deem it acceptable to tax labour (most of it very hardly earned) at 35%, then it is acceptable to tax luxuries at 20%. If this logic doesn't make you feel any better, then consider that I would use these Lm3 million to finance young couples to form and bring up a family. Think? Is there any better cause?

Now the difficult part is finding the third lot of Lm3 million. Here, if I were Tonio Fenech, I would walk down South Street towards Castille and request the Prime Minister's help. I would insist that he negotiate a saving of Lm3 million on that ill-planned terminal at Mgarr, Gozo.

I am sure that after having negotiated so heavily with the developers at Mater Dei Hospital, the renegotiation of the terminal from a projected cost of Lm14 million (remember that five years ago it was supposed to cost Lm4 million) down to Lm11 million should, for our Prime Minister, be a proverbial "walk in the park". The one-time saving on this megalomaniac project (one of the very many) will be used to finance the one-time boost in tourism marketing. Fair enough, don't you think?

I will not be opportunistic and say that government should cut taxes. The time for large fiscal injections to the economy is not now. Realistically, few of us believe that this government is in a position to contain public expenditure seriously.

Deficit reduction is and must remain a priority. In the absence of such, what could be effective are small and well targeted stimuli like the ones proposed above. I can think of at least a dozen more; can Tonio do likewise?

Mr Fenech is spokesman of Alternattiva Demokratika - the Green Party, on finance, the economy and tourism.