With a British vote in favour of leaving the European Union, Malta has lost an important ally but is now conscious of its responsibilities when Brexit discussions take place during Malta’s EU’ presidency which starts in January, Prime Minister Joseph Muscat said.
Malta enjoyed common stands with Britain on the economic front, and had its differences on the migration phenomenon and relationship with Russia, he said at a press conference. But, once the process leading to Britain’s eventual exit is completed, Malta is offering itself to be a gateway for the UK’s new relations with Europe.
Dr Muscat said there is disappointment across the EU but the reasons for this may vary. He said that Malta has made its decision to join the EU and there is no intention to organise a referendum similar to that which was held in Britain. Malta, he said, it doing well in the EU and is a success story, and "I will not let anyone take advantage of this situation" and push for Malta to leave as this will be "political suicide".
He said that things will not change overnight. There is a two-year process which starts when Britain officially writes to the EU to invoke Article 50 which stipulates the way in which a member state requests to leave the union. British PM David Cameron said that this process will start when he resigns as PM in October.
This means that there will not be any sudden drastic changes in Britain’s relationship with Britain, and consequently with Malta, Dr Muscat said. But a rebalancing exercise needs to be made and, as Malta has always insisted, this is an opportunity to work even harder to move away from the notion that in the EU one size fits all. The EU must become more flexible, he said.
He said that, in its preparation for taking over the EU presidency, ministries were asked to prepare for the eventuality that Britain voted to leave the union. In this respect, Malta is therefore prepared to take on an important role as part of the negotiations take place under Malta’s presidency. “We are in full gear” to face this challenge, he said.
Dr Muscat said that the sterling-euro rate is something that has an impact on Malta, such as on holidays the British spend in Malta. The sterling fell heavily today following the Brexit result, and this will have an effect on the British people’s spending power. The Brits found out that the one pound they had in their pocket is now worth 90 pence, he said. But one has to see what will happen in the near future and how the sterling will stabilise itself on the international currency market.
Dr Muscat said that the EU will still have to decide what to do after Malta’s six-month term as EU president finishes on 30 June 2017, considering that the UK is supposed to take over for the following six months. Malta’s position is that Estonia, scheduled to be EU President in January 2018, starts its term six months earlier. But if Estonia is not in a position to do so, Malta is ready to discuss other options with the EU.
A helpline will be established as from next week to give assistance to anyone who would like to get information on Brexit.