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Matthew Vella
In an interview with MaltaToday, economist Edward Scicluna describes this year’s budget as a “calculated political decision” to go for a budget that is “closer to home”.
“The past two budgets have been in the main addressed to the EU…We had the last opportunity before the examination to impress Brussels with our expenditure reforms, showing them we’re geared for the euro. The government decided to leave that and go for those closer to home. And that’s the choice that was taken, a calculated political decision. The language of the budget speech is local as well.”
Scicluna also says he is unsure of Malta’s preparedness to join the euro zone, in what he described as his “cold-blooded, objective assessment” that Brussels would tell Malta there were too many risks and uncertainties.
He said Malta’s economy, despite improvements in performance, was not robust enough to convince the “examiners” in Brussels that it was ready for the euro.
“I’d say Malta is pushing its luck. My cold-blooded, objective assessment would be that an examiner would say there are more risks and uncertainties, suggesting to us to give it another year.”
Asked about whether Malta’s target for entry into the euro zone in 2008 was ambitious, Scicluna says: “With hindsight, for the population at large the answer is yes. For the experts including the EU and IMF themselves the programme was always termed ‘very ambitious’.”
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