Reżistenza said on Wednesday that the resolution approved during Tuesday’s plenary of the European Parliament was another confirmation that the malpractices adopted by Muscat’s administration were threatening the future of Maltese children.

International institutions, it said, found that the country’s financial system had the characteristics of a tax haven.

When dealing with such a delicate sector, reputation is of utmost importance. We are risking losing the reputation which we painstakingly built over the years in the area of financial services.

It called on the government to discontinue the golden passport and residency scheme with immediate effect, describing it as “an act of piracy”.

Reżistenza said it was imperative to re-establish the rule of law in Malta, the impartiality of the judiciary, decency in the way institutions functioned and that the masterminds of Daphne Caruana Galizia’s murder were identified and made to face justice without any further delay.

Since Joseph Muscat came into power, it said, Malta became notorious as the EU’s bad boy. Dr Muscat set the narrative that by twisting established rules Malta was more cunning than its neighbours.

He kept perpetuating the myth that the country was becoming wealthier but he was stealing from children’s future.

“While celebrating freedom from a foreign colonial power, we find ourselves living in the fiefdom of a feudal lord who survives by appealing to man’s worst instincts: greed and selfishness,” it said.