Labour MEP candidate Ivan Grixti is not one to mince his words. He says that in order to appeal to Labour supporters, he has to tackle the issues most important to them.

“I’m obviously on the Labour party ticket, and the Labour supporters are after two things, namely jobs and housing. These are their problems which are there, they exist and this is where they ask for me to help out. The government has already started to address these issues in the budget, but the quantum leap will be when you indentify what the basic minimum pension for a couple to live decently is these days. In this regard, I think you’re talking roughly 1,100 to 1,200 euros a month.”

He says the EU should come into play when it comes to retirement ages, with one uniform retirement age across the bloc.

“We had the ridiculous situation like in Greece when a public civil worker could retire at the age of 51, whereas a German worker has to retire at the age of 65 or 67. In terms of increasing the retirement age in Malta, I think at this stage it has to be discussed in an EU context, like the banking union which I am fully for,” Mr Grixti said.

‘I was not in favour of EU membership’

Mr Grixti freely admits that he opposed Malta’s entry into the EU, but acknowledges that the benefits have outweighed the costs.

“When I considered the parameters prior to the referendum on EU membership, I have to be totally honest: no I was not in favour but I always considered the costs of staying out and that is a very difficult question to answer. I did my Master’s in Lancaster in 1994 having paid the registration fee applicable to non-EU students. Twenty years ago that was a significant outlay of money.  Today it is cheaper to study abroad thanks to our EU membership, which is certainly positive,” Mr Grixti said.

Fresh from submitting his thesis for a doctoral degree in Southampton, Mr Grixti says he is a man on a mission .During what he calls an “eight-year journey of discovery,” Mr Grixti met two young Maltese people also doing their PhD. He says it is a shame to see such expertise being enjoyed by other economies.

“When I consider that Malta had invested in their education and rightly so they spread their wings, I thought can I possibly do something to make sure that the Maltese nation benefits from the research that these people have done? This is one of the triggers which induced me to enter the political sphere.

“When we were asked to decided whether we should join the EU or not, my problem was not with Sicilian workers coming to Malta, my question and worry was the brain drain we were going to have. I’m pleased that my students are within in a year going to New York, Milan or Canary Wharf in London, but there are a few of them who don’t come back,” Mr Grixti said.

This stance seems to go against one of the very pediments on which the EU is built, namely freedom of movement.

“There is no harm in free movement, but when you consider other economies are not at strong as we are, I think we can do better by attracting foreign direct investment, which will then engage offer an opportunity for this young talent to come back,” Mr Grixti said.

Revamped citizenship scheme: It will score top marks in EP

Mr Grixti is pleased with the latest guise of the citizenship scheme. He says the government’s willingness to listen to the public and implement changes is a sign of political maturity.

“It was clear that the government had to go back to the drawing board, I was pleased that the Prime Minister in concluding the discussions on the budget was very blunt in offering bilateral discussion with the Opposition.”

 “The way that the scheme has been reorganised, I am hopeful that it will definitely score the best marks within the EP during its debate on Malta’s citizenship scheme.”

Asked what the government’s biggest failure to date is, Mr Grixti fingers the aforementioned citizenship scheme. 

“I wouldn’t call it a failure; I would call it a possible misjudgement. I think the citizenship programme was not originally...well its useless trying to play around with words, it was evident that the Maltese public in its majority was not happy in the way it was presented. But again, and this is where the new Labour government is different, it immediately recognised this and engaged in bilateral discussions. 

“There was a will to improve the original draft, and I was pleased that the Prime Minister and Opposition leader were engaged in discussion to try and find a solution. Obviously we know what the end result was, but I am pleased with how the programme is now, and I reiterate that I am hopeful that it will satisfy the eventual discussion in the EP. That will be a showcase of how things have to be administered. It’s not an issue of having a nine-seat majority, you have to be in continuous touch with people and their general feelings, and the general feeling was that most were not happy with the programme.”

As to the biggest triumph to date, Mr Grixti says that the government delivered with the 2014 budget.

“Well the biggest success is definitely the government’s first budget, it was well thought out, well prepared, well advertised, and the measures taken there are addressing and supporting the electoral manifesto.”

MEP candidature: Money not a factor

Mr Grixti sees MEPs as having a dual role, engaging in debates and making sure that Maltese interests are not harmed by EU legislation, and acting as ambassadors for their country.

“My vision is that through attracting the right foreign direct investment, we can offer young talent the right salaries, bringing them back to our country in order to further contribute to economic growth.”

With a salary hovering around the €100,000 per year mark, being an MEP is certainly an attractive prospect from a financial point of view. But money, Mr Grixti says, is not his primary motivation.

“There is a distinction between seeking your own personal endeavours and trying to put your expertise and know-how for the better good. This is why I chose to run for MEP. Being an MEP entails being a technocrat sometimes and I feel with my know-how both as an accountant and a university lecturer, I feel that I can do good for my people.”

SWOTting the competition

Mr Grixti faces some pretty stiff competition in the upcoming election, with Labour fielding a number of experienced politicians like former Prime Minister Alfred Sant. According to Mr Grixti, the key to success is being comfortable in his own skin.

“I’ll be myself. I have my strengths and weakness. I have done my SWOT analysis (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats) like we do in management. I have done this analysis and I’ll stick to it. Now if it’s meant to be then it’s meant to be.”

If elected to the EP, Mr Grixti is adamant that he will continue lecturing at the University of Malta.

“I will do as my predecessor Professor Edward Scicluna has done and keep on lecturing when I am in Malta, but just one module. I love my students and my students love me. That would also be an opportunity to keep in contact with the profession. Before entering the lecture hall I always update myself and consequently update my students.”

University students after often portrayed as being overly pampered when compared to their European counterparts, but Mr Grixti insists that stipends and free undergraduate courses are the way to go.

“Education has to be as it is. What we have to address is how we create new employment opportunities for those who have left the country, we need to use their expertise in order to further economic growth. Education should definitely remain as it is, subsisted by stipends as they ease the pain on families. The government subsidises our journey through education, and that’s the way it should be.”

Bio

Ivan Grixti was born in Sliema on February 13th, 1967.

He received his primary education at St Joseph School in Sliema. His secondary education was then split between St Aloysius College and the Junior Lyceum in Handaq. Having achieved his ‘A’ levels he joined the University of Malta doing an under-graduate course in Accountancy which he completed in 1991. Two years later he read for a Masters in Accounting & Finance at the University of Lancaster. Since 2003 he has been engaged as a full-time member of the academic staff at the University of Malta within the department of Accountancy.

Ivan is a Certified Public Accountant and has participated on various government as well as Ecclesiastical boards.

Ivan has also contributed voluntarily within the musical and religious cultural organisations. He himself is a festa enthusiast. Up to a few months ago he also held the office of President of the King’s Own Band Club in Valletta.

He is married to Carmen neè Debattista from Zabbar and they have four siblings, Daniel, Thomas, Mireille and Esther.