Not a gamble but a safety-net

By Mario Schembri Wismayer

The conference was held in a highly glitzy room, where if you look up, you see your posterior framing your head like a halo on account of the two massive mirrors that line the ceiling.

Professor Josef Bonnici, in introducing the address of EU Commissioner for Trade, Pascal Lamy, expressed satisfaction that this conference had occurred in Malta and that Malta had taken part in three out of four such conferences.

Malta had not taken part in one of the four conferences because at the time Malta was not a candidate country to join the EU. He said that this conference was invaluable to further trade between Malta and other countries. He added that joining the EU was a case of finding strength in greater numbers.

Taking the stand, Commissioner Lamy said in a heavy French accent, that he was happy with the outcome of the two-day conference.

He said that the purpose of the conference was a review of developments at ministerial level. He said that each time the conference convened, it became a little easier and more focused.

The Commissioner said that trade aspects of assimilation were reviewed and no major problems were encountered. He added that everybody’s big deadline was accession and that they were trying to remove all the stones on the road ahead to make the path easier.

The Commissioner’s main message was that the final decision was of the people. He said that people should, however, go beyond just weighing the pros and cons of whether to join or not.

People should consider very seriously the cost of not joining. If Malta chose not to join the EU, it would have to live by its rules, but not take part in the decision-making process.

Malta should look to the future, rather than the past. Mr Lamy went on to say that accession would help Malta face future challenges. He said that Malta had an important role to play in the Mediterranean theatre.

Mr Lamy said that the European pond was one where even the small fish had a voice. By joining the EU, Malta would benefit from being part of the club and would also reap the benefits of big club networks. Malta needed an anchor and the peace and stability of the EU over the last fifty years could provide such an anchor.

Island specificity was not a problem for the EU as Malta was in good company as far as islands go and presented no great problem, the commissioner said, adding that joining the EU was not a gamble, but a safety net.

When asked if there was a contingency plan if the Nice treaty failed, Commissioner Lamy answered in the negative, joking that had they had one, he would deny it existed.