Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1068299
13 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 6 JANUARY 2019 NEWS In 2019 • European elections legislation for animal welfare used in Germany to encourage pig breeders to implement animal-friendly meas- ures through local subsides – Malta imposed the same legislation without discussion and subsidies. "In Germa- ny, it is carrot and stick. In Malta, it is just the stick." Agius believes Gozo will be a hot- button topic in the European elections. "Gozo saw virtually none of the expan- sion of the services industry in Malta and around 85% of its young graduates delocalised to Malta for qualified jobs. "Do we want Gozo to be an old peo- ple's home or do we want to see it for the opportunity it represents as an al- ternative and unique investment des- tination beefing up product Malta? EU funds and measures can help, but these need to be decided according to Gozitan priorities by the Gozitans themselves not imposed top-down from Castille as is the case at present," he said. Agius also said rapid changes will see the skills of many workers in their 40s today become out-dated in 10 years with the onset of the Internet of Things, robotics and AI. "Ro- botics on its own is predicted to lead to the loss of 55 million jobs in the next decade in the continent. Malta will not be immune to this." He said Malta has to harness this era not only by attracting foreign investment, as the country is doing through Block- chain, but by also attracting innovators and researchers. "We need to focus on knowledge transfer to our young grad- uates for us to come stronger from the digital revolution. The next EU budget will be fundamental for this, with a €9.2 billion fund only for digital. Gov- ernment is not showing any actual preparation to tap into this as yet." Agius also warned that EU efforts for tax harmonisation will dominate the next legislature. "The wave for tax fairness will not stop. We need to ex- plore more organic ways of dialogue with countries like France and Germa- ny in this regard… We need to work together as Maltese and with all other countries with the will to defend fis- cal competence as a matter of national sovereignty, to propose alternatives to the narrative of the promoters of fiscal harmonisation." Even on migration, Agius said the entire EU project could be in jeopardy. "Our minds cannot be put at rest if we know that 24 million Af- ricans are ready to leave their countries to mi- grate north." He said that EU needs to go beyond the block- age of the Eastern countries and test a half-way soli- darity mechanism coupling voluntary with legally binding measures to ensure frontier countries are assisted in case of irregu- lar migration flows. George Vital Zammit, University of Malta lecturer in public policy Dr George Vital Zam- mit lists economic devel- opment and trade as one of the most critical issues in the upcoming European elections. "Economies in the Union have grown disparately. The forecast for 2019 is a reduction in growth, with more loom- ing uncertainty. Europe is home to the world's largest single market and second most used currency, yet, it represents a falling share of the world population and a shrinking of its share of global GDP." With the rising influence of emerg- ing economies putting more pressure on the EU to harness new industries and remain competitive, the EU will have to welcome changes in energy supplies as well as face the economic implications of Brexit. "In the words of Carlos Slim, the fourth industrial rev- olution will eradicate more jobs than it will create. The ability of countries to adapt, retrain and innovate their workforces will determine their resil- ience to change. Job mobility within the Union will remain a key charac- teristic in addressing the demand for labour." Zammit Vital said migration remains the elephant in the room. "Such is the sensitivity of the phenomenon, that upon signing of the Global Com- pact for Migra- tion, the Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel had to resign after losing a vote of no con- fidence. Three Member States voted against it. While to a lesser ex- tent than 2004, migra- tion will also be an issue in Malta, especially if arrivals will surge in the weeks preceding the election." He said that at the borders of the European Union are failed states and states with "social turmoil" with Eu- rope continuing to remain an attrac- tive opportunity for people from the African and Asian continent. "The subject has repetitively shown and proven that a one-size-fits-all is very hard to apply. Similarly, the imple- mentation of ad-hoc solutions has weakened the European Union in be- ing able to address the settlement of migrants effectively." Zammit Vital said that EU mem- ber states would need to foster social models that bridge divides, promote opportunities, link social partners, and strive for more equitable social outcomes. "Whereas Europe has the highest levels of social protection, the future seems uncertain, especially for future generations… the benefits of eco- nomic and social progress need to be further widened, to mitigate dispari- ties, lack of access and exclusion." "Without a healthy environment where to live and work, we cannot enjoy the benefits of an economic boom. There is an active interest that shows that citizens want us as policymakers, to give greater attention to the environment and climate change."