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22.08.19 7 FOREIGN NEWS COUNTDOWN TO BREXIT 64 DAYS TO GO THE pound to euro exchange rate experi- enced a rebound this week after German Chancellor Angela Merkel indicated that the EU could be willing to consider practi- cal solutions to the Irish backstop impasse. At the time of writing, the pound is trad- ing at 1.093 against the euro, according to Bloomberg, a significant improvement for GBP, which last week reached its lowest levels seen 2012. e exchange rate, however, remains de- pendent on Brexit political developments. e outcome of a meeting on Wednes- day this week between the German chan- cellor and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is expected to further impact the sterling, with any positive developments possibly leading to the pound garnering more support. It remains to be seen what fluctuations will occur, but British holidaymakers plan- ning on travelling away from the UK for the upcoming bank holiday weekend will hope that any changes are for the better. e upside for the GBP, ING analysts say, will however remain limited in the near-term, with the economists predict- ing that any spikes in the currency will continue to be short-lived, until there is progress made in efforts to prevent a no- deal Brexit. It is likely that the pound will continue to fluctuate as people try to anticipate what the next development will be, with the uncertainty persisting in somewhat con- trolling the exchange rate. Sterling briefly rebounds, but exchange rate remains tied to Brexit MASSIMO COSTA THE government is waiting for the opportune moment to issue more information on the prepara- tions Malta is undertaking to deal with the increasingly likely no-deal Brexit scenario, Edward Zammit Lewis said. e European Affairs ministers told BusinessToday that the gov- ernment's Brexit unit is intensify- ing its readiness, and that once the situation is less fluid, will be issu- ing information to the public on the sectors which it an- ticipates may e x p e r i e n c e changes if the UK with- draws from the EU with- out a deal. Earlier this week Boris John- son said that freedom of movement would end on 31 October, the date Brexit is set to happen. e British Prime Min- ister insisted preparations for a no-deal Brexit were on track. is prompted Zammit Lewis to say that Malta was monitoring the sit- uation and would be leaving noth- ing to chance. Asked by BusinessToday on Wednesday to give details on what this in effect meant, Zammit Lewis said Malta was being vigilant when it came to any Brexit developments and would be carrying out adjust- ments its plan as needed. "e [ministry's] Brexit unit will keep intensifying its work and will, at the opportune moment, be passing information on to the pub- lic regarding the various sectors – such as SMEs and pharmaceutical sector – which we anticipate will see the biggest changes. We will be helping these sectors increase their level of preparedness to make them ready for every eventuality," he said. e minister said that his minis- try and the various other relevant departments had been working on their Brexit preparedness for a number of months. "e work we are doing here is horizontal, and, although led by my ministry, involves also the principal permanent secretary and coordination at departmental level with entities such as Identity Mal- ta, the Finance Ministry, the Cus- toms Department, the Malta Fi- nancial Services Authority and the Malta Gaming Authority," he said, "So, at various levels we are pre- paring both for a Brexit based on the current withdrawal agreement, and for a no-deal Brexit. A no-deal Brexit, he said, was now "more of a possible reality than ever before" and was a "prob- able scenario, based on what Boris Johnson is saying." He noted that, should the UK leave the EU on 31 October without a deal, Brit- ain with start being considered a third-country by the EU. Johnson has demanded that the EU abolish the withdrawal agree- ment's Irish backstop, threatening that the UK would leave without a deal should his request not be upheld. His attempt was rebuffed by the EU, however, with Europe- an Council president Donald Tusk accusing the British government of failing to admit that this would lead to a return of a hard Irish bor- der. e UK government later an- nounced that British officials would stop attending the majority of EU meetings from 1 September. In terms of how he had respond- ed to this, Zammit Lewis, who was sworn in as minister in late July, said he had promptly stepped up the government's no-deal prepara- tions. "When I was appointed minister, I immediately began to coordinate with the relevant ministries at a political and administrative level to intensify our drill in preparation of the possible scenarios – both a Brexit with a withdrawal agree- ment, but also for the undesirable outcome of a no-deal," he said. Once there is more stability in the situation, the Maltese government will be starting an informative campaign, he said, highlighting that, due to the fluidity of the sit- uation, there was a limit as to what information could be supplied at the moment. "Our aim remains to protect our national interest, SMEs, micro-en- terprises, Maltese citizens in the UK and Britons in Malta, and so on, to ensure Brexit's impact is as well-managed as possible," he un- derscored. Asked to elaborate on how Mal- tese citizens in Britain and British expats in Malta will be safeguard- ed, Zammit Lewis emphasised that the Maltese government and Prime Minister had given their commit- ment that such persons would be protected. "e goal is to maintain the status quo as much as possible. We have an interest to protect our British friends in Malta and the Maltese community in the UK. Commit- ments at a high level have been made. As we go along, we will re- fine them, but the aim is to lessen the administrative burden and, as far as it is possible, to keep the sit- uation as it is as present," the min- ister added. Government to issue details about post- Brexit plan once situation less fluid MALTA Enterprise has been preparing for Brexit's impact for some time, and has been keeping in contact with all local companies which export to or import from the UK, the agency's new CEO Kurt Farrugia told Business- Today. "We are in constant engagement with busi- nesses - we are reaching out to them, particu- larly the ones which trade with the UK," he said, "We are also engaged with stakeholders, the GRTU and the Chamber of Commerce to dis- cuss possible initiatives." e general sentiment amongst local busi- nesses, however, was not one of alarm, even in the case of a no-deal Brexit. "roughout the past months, most compa- nies have been undertaking their own prepara- tions, so there is a sense that if a no-deal hap- pens, they will be ready." He said that no particular sectors were show- ing any significant worries about a no-deal withdrawal, but that Malta Enterprise would continue engaging with businesses and keeping tabs on developments, to ensure firms are not caught unawares. Farrugia also confirmed that a number of UK companies, notably those in the aviation and video games sectors, had showed interest in opening an operation in Malta. "ere have been companies who have al- ready set up in Malta but might choose to not announce outright that Brexit is behind this, in- stead saying they are expanding and opening a Maltese office," he said. "e reality is that there is interest by UK busi- nesses to set up operations in the EU, and Mal- ta is a good option for this. We are positioning ourselves as being open for such businesses, but do not intend to appear to be stealing any busi- nesses away from Britain," Farrugia added. Malta Enterprise in 'constant engagement' with businesses European Affairs minister Edward Zammit Lewis says government is waiting for right moment to pass on more detailed information to the public about the local sectors which could be most affected by a no-deal Brexit Malta Enterprise CEO Kurt Farrugia

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