Family

George Lewis
Age: 39
Residence: Naxxar house
Relationship status: married with two children
Job: self-employed importer and distributor
Income: over €40,000 (joint)

George Lewis and his wife Romina feel the Budget was positive on the whole and hopes all measures will be implemented.

As the parents of two children – Tara, nine, and Benji, three – they find the reduction of utility bills to be positive.

The couple are glad to see the reduction of income tax to 29 per cent from 32 per cent in their bracket.

They also like the Government’s commitment to pay flights for both parents in cases of children needing overseas treatment.

Another good measure is the proposal for shops remain open for longer hours and the concept behind the breakfast club for State schools.

Even though Mr Lewis and his wife – who is an LSA at a private school – do not use childcare, they leave their children with their parents and like the idea of free childcare being available.

Mr Lewis would have liked to see grants for PV panels and is disappointed that the car scrappage scheme was reduced from the previous €2,000 to between €500 and €900.

The cost-of-living-allowance is another plus but Mr Lewis hopes it can be sustained by employers.

Pensioner

Albert Tabone
Age: 88
Residence: St Julian’s apartment
Relationship status: married
Job: pensioner on a full pension

Mr Tabone has been a pensioner for the past 27 years after working with the Office of the Prime Minister, Telemalta and Enemalta. He remained active until 75.

He is a former president of the National Association of Pensioners and of the Alliance of Pensioners’ Organisation.

Mr Tabone was pleased to note the Government continued building on the pension reform process introduced by the previous administration. He referred to the increase in the service pension as well as the €300 allowance for those over 78 which, from next year, will be given to people over 75.

He also found it interesting that the Government committed itself to reducing the guaranteed national pension to the equivalent of 60 per cent of the national income.

He welcomed the emphasis placed on drawing people to the labour market, especially those on benefits.

“I was glad to note the Government planned to incentivise the elderly to return to work by retaining their full pension.”

“On the whole though, it seems we are moving forward. However, we must wait for results next year. Only time will tell.”

Gainfully occupied

Joshua Cassar Gaspar
Age: 29
Residence: Mosta townhouse
Relationship status: single
Job: production company owner

As a person who works in the film sector, for Mr Cassar Gaspar the introduction of the film co-production fund is an additional incentive to the film industry.

“Malta is linked to servicing foreign productions and now we’re going to take it up a notch.

“We’re going to be co-producing, and I think this fund is going to help Malta develop its European filming identity and bring more shoots to Malta,” he said.

Overall, Mr Cassar Gaspar believes the Budget was a very good effort, including assistance proposed within the healthcare sector, income tax cuts, and tax incentives for married women returning to work.

From the corporate point of view, the Jeremie and Microinvest schemes and tax credit incentives will help continue attract foreign investment to Malta.

Mr Cassar Gaspar welcomed news that car fuel has gone up only minimally, and noted that alcohol, which also saw a tax rise, was a luxury.

Another positive in this budget that Mr Cassar Gaspar was looking out for was the fact that the VAT rate remained unchanged.

Student

Jake Dalli
Age: 21
Residence: San Ġwann house
Relationship status: single
Job: student
Income: stipend

University of Malta undergraduate student Jake Dalli said he was satisfied with the Budget overall.

As a student he said the increase in stipends was definitely welcomed.

He pointed out that the application of a pro rata cost-of-living-allowance to stipends made the system more in line with daily costs.

The measure also reinforced the perception of the system as a social benefit rather than an incentive.

This, he said, raised doubts over whether stipends should be calculated through means testing or not.

Mr Dalli also welcomed the introduction of stipends for students forced to repeat a year. He felt the incentive would encourage students to continue studying, despite having been held back. The stability of fuel prices was also a major plus as Mr Dalli drives to the University campus on a daily basis.

As a smoker Mr Dalli said the rise in excise duty on cigarettes was mostly aimed at encouraging smokers to quit. However, he felt the price hike would not be enough to get him to kick the habit.

Entrepreneur

Chris Gruppetta
Age: 39
Residence: Rabat house
Relationship status: married with two children, aged five and three
Job: Merlin publishing director
Salary: between €20,000 and €25,000

As a father and a businessman, Mr Gruppetta felt the Budget was positive overall.

“Had I spent the last year on Mars and switched on to watch it today, I would have assumed it was a budget drawn up by the Nationalist Party.”

One of the measures he welcomed was the tax break for work placements. “Businesswise it makes sense as we get asked all the time to take students,” Mr Gruppetta said.

The programme offering free childcare and the reduction in income tax were also positive. He wanted to know more about measures for disabled and semi-independent living in the community.

However, Mr Gruppetta was disappointed at the lack of initiatives for culture.

“I know a cultural hub was mentioned together a study for a museum of contemporary arts but nothing else was mentioned.”

Among the pending issues in the field of culture was the issue of protection of intellectual property rights, which had never been tackled.

Turning to the income tax break for football players, Mr Gruppetta asked why a similar scheme was not created for artists.