The Individual Investor Programme (IIP), in spite of the controversy which the Nationalists have purposely created about it, will be beneficial for our country. Some MEPs criticized Malta, others claimed that countries should have the right to decide their own private national matters and that the EU should not interfere in Malta’s national interests. One must also mention here that, in spite of the fact that the Nationalists tried their best to hide this, the European Socialists voted overwhelmingly to remove Malta’s name from the motion being discussed.

What is the Individual Investor Programme and what does PM Joseph Muscat want to achieve?

Through this scheme the Maltese government aims to attract ‘high value’ people who are interested in acquiring Maltese citizenship and foresees the possibility of raising some €1000 million euro; a well needed economic boost for Malta. EU MEPS and those against this scheme seem to ignore the fact that Austria has in place a similar scheme where citizenship is granted to those with no major connections to the country, if none at all. Countries like Portugal, Belgium and Canada grant residence as per the net worth of an individual after a number of years. The only difference between Malta and the aforementioned countries is the number of years the individual resides in that particular country. Malta will grant automatic citizenship upon receipt of a fixed payment, investment in real estate and in Government bonds, hence one may argue that Malta is no different to the aforementioned countries, since the individual is still investing in Malta and immediately acquiring the rights to live as a Maltese national. There is nothing absurd or alarming about this scheme. The only difference is the automatic granting of Maltese citizenship against payment versus the number of requirements proposed by other EU countries in order to acquire citizenship.

Whether Malta is seen as a back door entry to the EU by non-EU nationals or not, one has to seriously weigh the pros and speculate what is happening in EU countries. Although the granting of citizenship by other EU nationals may not be as direct as that proposed by Malta, other EU countries are similarly acting as EU back door entrances to non EU nationals.

As the Prime Minister said after the European Parliament discussion, we have taken note of what was said but it is now time to move on. We should not bow our heads to anyone, especially to those who have similar schemes and hence are in direct competition with us. Neither should we take lightly to the Nationalist Maltese MEPs who attacked Malta in the European Parliament when it was their job to do exactly the opposite.

I am more than convinced that, once the scheme is in place, all Maltese citizens will definitely reap the benefits and appreciate our PM’s positive and strong stance on the matter. A brilliant scheme – one which will raise Malta to the standards it so deserves, where surely other EU nationals will follow suit once the advantages of the scheme start leaving the desired results.