Majority think crisis is almost over but oppose EU financial transaction tax

A European Union-wide survey – conducted in Malta by Misco last month on behalf of the EU – has found that the overwhelming majority of Maltese are upbeat about the economy and many think the economic crisis is almost over.

However they also opposed the idea of introducing a new EU-wide tax on financial transactions despite the popularity of this measure among the majority of the other EU member states. According to the survey, 62 per cent of the 500 Maltese respondents who were interviewed face-to-face said they believed the economic crisis was over or almost over. The Maltese appear to have adopted a much more positive attitude than the other EU populations many of whom still think that more bad news is on the way.

Malta was one of the least hit EU member states by the global economic crisis and its banks were largely unaffected.

The survey’s results show that only 29 per cent of Maltese respondents believe the crisis is expected to last a few more years. On the other hand, 29 per cent said that growth is expected to start soon while another 19 per cent said that economic growth has already started. Another 14 per cent were also positive stating that they expect growth to pick up in the coming weeks.

Despite the global economic situation Malta last year registered one of the highest economic growths in the eurozone.

At the same time, the survey shows that while the majority of EU populations favour the introduction of a financial transaction tax – charging a small tax on all banking transactions to boost the country’s budget – the Maltese emerged to be the most against this idea. While 61 per cent of EU respondents backed this idea, only 30 per cent of the Maltese did. Forty four per cent of Maltese respondents said that they reject the idea of this tax.

The EU has been considering the idea of introducing this kind of tax and is expected to do so shortly. The European Commission estimates that such a financial transaction tax could yield around €20 billion a year for the EU’s governments.

Most EU member states favour a levy on banks, although not necessarily on every financial transaction.

The Maltese government also agrees with the introduction of a tax on banking “if this is introduced on a level playing field” among all the member states and other financial jurisdictions. However, until now Malta has always opposed the introduction of other forms of taxes by the EU as it deems that this is the remit of national member states.

The opinion poll also shows that the Maltese are among the highest supporters of more EU integration where it comes to economic and fiscal policies.

Sixty two per cent said that if Malta adopted measures in coordination with the rest of the EU it would be in a better position to fight a future economic crisis similar to the recent one. Only 26 per cent said that they prefer Malta to act in isolation on these matters.