Former Foreign Minister Francis Zammit Dimech said the Citizenship Bill was about whom the Maltese were to trust as fellow citizens with the same rights as them.
The Bill had not appeared in any pre-election MLP billboards or slogans, so the Government had no electoral mandate for it. Had the need been realised only after the election, or had Labour known it would not have gone down well with voters?
Dr Zammit Dimech said the importance of the ongoing discussion could not be underestimated, as it dealt with the question of who should be considered a Maltese citizen.
This proposed Individual Investor Programme, although there was no clear-cut link, was extremely dangerous for the financial services sector, which was crucial to economic growth, he said, adding that he hoped the Government was genuinely willing to take the consensual approach it called for.
Dr Zammit Dimech said that during her presentation in the Citizenship by Investment and International Residence in London, Madeleine Sumption, Assistant Director at the Migration Policy Institute said there were various citizenship schemes tied to investment, but a general rule one could rely on was precisely that tied to Foreign Direct Investment in the country’s economy. He suggested that perhaps the Government could contact Ms Sumption.
Some countries, especially Caribbean countries, used the non-refundable donation system, and unfortunately Malta appeared to be choosing the same model, although in some ways it fared worse.
The UK, Portugal and other countries offering similar schemes requested investment activity, creation of jobs, acquisition of real estate and depositing funds in national institutions. Furthermore investors can only arrive at citizenship after a number of years. Even Spain, with all its difficulties, required a minimum initial investment of €2 million.
Dr Zammit Dimech said both sides were still in time to serve Malta’s reputation better, deciding the components needed to have the scheme Malta deserved.
Both sides were still in time to serve Malta’s reputation better
This was the choice the Government was faced with, he said, concluding with an appeal to seek consensus on this law. If this appeal was not heard, the Opposition could not keep quiet about its suspicions regarding what Government might have lined up.
He warned that what was achieved might have short-term gains, but medium- and long-term be its ruin.
Other speakers were former Justice Minister Chris Said and Nationalist MPs Claudette Buttigieg and Ryan Callus.
The debate continues this morning.