The solidarity that was shown with Greece to prevent its economic meltdown needs to be shown with states like Malta and Italy when dealing with immigration, Foreign Minister Tonio Borg said this morning.
Opening a public dialogue on the priorities and programme of the Belgian Presidency of the EU, Dr Borg said that although arrivals this year have been less than last year for this time of year, this did not mean that the responsibilities for catering and housing the thousands of immigrants in Malta have decreased.
“On the contrary, arrival numbers cannot be taken out of context and need to be seen within the larger picture of all those who have arrived over the last few years,” he said.
Earlier, Dr Borg welcomed the Belgian Presidency, promised Malta’s assistance and said he had no doubt that it would deliver.
Beglium, he said, was giving importance to the implementation of the EU2020 strategy.
The recession had shown Europe’s weakest links.
“The time has come for us to take concerted action to safeguard our future generations.
“We are the agents of change and therefore we have to take some tough decisions to ensure a stronger Europe.
“Where we will be in 2020 will depend on us.
“Action needs to be taken today.”
Dr Borg noted that last year saw the EU economies shrink by four per cent; industrial production by 20 per cent; unemployment stood at nearly 30 million with over 21 per cent of youth unemployed.
Europe’s growth potential was halved by the crisis and its productivity was lagging behind the rest of the world. The crisis in Greece was another wake-up call but would Europe learn from it and take the tough decisions that were needed to build stronger European foundations for our economies, he asked.
The time has come, Dr Borg said, for Europe to adopt a comprehensive strategy to ensure positive growth and prevent a loss of a generation of wealth. Europe had to realise that the world was not waiting for it.
Global competition was fierce and its share of global exports is declining. Lessons have to be learnt quickly, the stakes were too high and more coordination was crucial.
Malta, he said, welcomed the EU2020 strategy and viewed it as an extension of its own Vision 2015.
“Our strategy for reform has forced us to take some tough and unpopular decisions which are slowly but surely paying off.
“We will no doubt join forces with our European counterparts to work together to create a Europe of sustainable growth and jobs.
“Our unique qualities as a union of democratic states should never be underestimated.
“The solidarity shown with Greece over the last few months bears witness to a deeper union based not solely on economics but also on a conscientious realisation that our interdependence means that none of us can be allowed to fall by the wayside,” he said.
Dr Borg also referred to the recruitment of personnel for the European External Action Service, this Presidency would be seeking.
This, he said, was nothing short of a milestone in the historical evolution of the union.
Its relevance to all member states would depend greatly on whether or not smaller states would be allocated any significant number of places within the service.
“As Malta, we do not expect to be over-represented but would like to ensure that we are represented properly to do a job and not merely as a statistical assurance.
“For Malta to feel part of the process, we must not be sidelined.
“Considering our low representation (and that of other new member states) in the Commission and Council bodies, we expect that this anomaly can be redressed and this under representation should be taken into account.”