They say that there are three types of lies: lies; damned lies; and statistics. When it comes to the way in which we gauge trends, we are bombarded with so much information that we are sometimes not even aware of the way in which we favour some information over others.

The person looking at the data may have a political agenda, a competitive one or even a Machiavellian one – but there is no doubt that each person has his/her own perception, which colours how they look at things.

This is why the EY Attractiveness Survey tiptoes along a very fine line. Its value is derived from the fact that it is independent and that the results are presented as devoid of comment as those of the National Statistics Office.

This year, EY decided to present the findings, the ninth study of the series, at a conference that presented ample chance for various stakeholders to interpret the findings, disagree with them and also challenge each other’s interpretations. All healthy stuff.

But no matter how unbiased a presentation EY Malta country manager, Ronald Attard gave, certain statistics clearly showed some worrying trends. The survey is aimed at companies in Malta with a majority foreign shareholding – and whereas 72 per cent of them in 2009 said they had expansion plans, that fell to 53 per cent in 2012.

A third of the respondents don’t think that they will still be here in 10 years’ time. Or should that be two-thirds think that they will be? The point is to understand the various factors at play, to see what can be done to reverse the trend, to be proactive in preventing more pressures being put on their decisions.

Perhaps the timeframe was too long for sectors like insurance and iGaming, where a host of external factors beyond their control could influence their decisions, such factors ranging from fiscal incentives in other jurisdictions to regulatory pressure on their bottom lines.

The survey asks respondents to rank the factors which make Malta attractive to investors – and to make recommendations on what could be improved. When it comes to the former, the factors are testimony to the country’s stability – political, social, regulatory and legal.

But when it comes to the latter, there are things on the list that defy change, factors like the transport infrastructure that are cited year after year in spite of the port reform, rising labour costs not linked to productivity, and a shortage of skilled workers in dynamic new sectors.

The panel guests had lists of their own – as well as quick-fix solutions. If there is such demand for office space then why not revoke the policy on using ground floors, currently limited to retail and showrooms? Other issues require far more long-term solutions, such as Gozo’s reliance on a single power cable.

There is another aspect to the statistics: they represent foreign-owned companies almost all of which came to Malta after having considered various other jurisdictions. They actively chose Malta.

Of course, local companies are important – but, for the most part, their presence in Malta is passive and they will remain here irrespective of how attractive the islands are. Their options are to stay or else close down, with very few of them being able to relocate.

Foreign companies, on the other hand, can actively choose to leave.

The survey found that 88 per cent of the respondents still find Malta attractive for investment. However, beauty has to be more than skin deep. This country will ignore niggling little question marks about the future at its peril.

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