Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1526110
7 NEWS maltatoday | SUNDAY • 1 SEPTEMBER 2024 ANNOUNCEMENT OF CALL FOR PROJECT PROPOSALS (EDUCATION, TCNs & SUPPORT) UNDER ASYLUM, MIGRATION AND INTEGRATION FUND (AMIF) 2021-2027 The Ministry responsible for European Funds would like to announce that it is launching a call for project proposals in the following area: Specific Objective 2: strengthening and developing legal migration to the Member States in accordance with their economic and social needs, promoting and contributing to the effective integration and social inclusion of third country nationals. Applications shall cover one of the following funding priorities: reducing language barriers in schools to facilitate integration among children; promoting diversity in the educational sector to address current and future needs of society; cultivating ethnicity in the social and educational sectors; and provision of support services to migrant families to facilitate access in the education system. The online application form, details of eligibility and indicator guideline notes are available https://fondi.eu/what-funding-is-available/. Applicants are invited to submit complete application forms by not later than Friday, 15 th November 2024 at noon. Prospective applicants are encouraged to refer to the AMIF Programme available on https://fondi.eu/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/AMIF-Programme-v-2.0.pdf in order to check whether their proposals are eligible for funding through this call for project proposals. Any queries should be sent by e-mail on fondi.eu@gov.mt. A dedicated information session will be held on Thursday, 19 th September 2024 from 09:00 till 11:00 at The Oaks Business Centre, Farsons Street, Ħamrun. Registration for the information session can be done by scanning the below QR code. cut in 2022 election campaign the middle class will benefit from "better tax rates". A large swathe of middle in- come earners has seen their pockets squeezed and sav- ings shaved by high inflation over the past four years. The post-2013 feel good factor has long evaporated, also because of unforeseen circumstances such as the COVID pandemic and the war in Ukraine. But at the same time, many voters who supported Labour in the general election have lost their patience and are peeved at government over the millions in public funds being squandered on corruption, waste and inefficiencies. The Vitals case was the cherry on the cake, especially when Labour supporters went outside court to cheer Joseph Muscat, Konrad Mizzi and Keith Schembri during their arraignment on corruption charges just before the Euro- pean election. Government's reaction to this brewing anger by middle of the road voters was less than decorous at the time with Abela hitting out at the judici- ary and journalists in a bid to defend his predecessor. Now, Abela is hoping he can reverse the decline by deliver- ing a generous tax cut on top of the hefty energy subsidies. Whether the budget will de- liver on the expectations Ab- ela is raising will have to be seen. Government's room for ma- noeuvre is somewhat condi- tioned by the excessive deficit procedure imposed by the Eu- ropean Commission although the rules are much more flexi- ble today than they ever were. Nonetheless, the bigger ques- tion mark is whether a tax cut will be enough to allay voter impatience with Abela's tired government no matter how generous it will be. What Labour said in the election campaign On the second day of the 2022 election campaign the Labour Party had unveiled its tax relief proposals, which it pledged to implement gradually over the five-year span. Apart from the continuation of the annual tax refunds, the government has so far not implemented its pledge to cut personal and corporate income tax. Personal tax For parents, the first €12,200 of income earned will not be subject to income tax – up from €10,500. For single persons, the first €10,800 will not be taxed – up from €9,100. For married persons, the first €14,400 will not be taxed – up from €12,700. The measure would see €60 million more being left in people's pockets. The tax refund cheques for those earning less than €60,000 will continue being dished out, a further injection of €24 million. Corporate tax The PL also pledged to lower the corporate tax rate to 25% from the current 35% on the first €250,000 of profits earned in a year. The proposal was estimated to save companies up to €25,000 yearly. Robert Abela, flanked by Clyde Caruana and Silvio Schembri on the seond day of the 2022 election campaign when the PL unveiled its tax relief proposals The late George Bonello Dupuis, who served as finance minister for the incoming Nationalist government in 1987, had delivered a historic tax cut when lowering the top rate to 35% from 65%