It was a pleasure to stand with the Prime Minister and the Health and Finance Ministers as a grant of €5 million was awarded to Puttinu Cares. The grant came from the National Development and Social Fund, which received its revenue from the Individual Investor Programme (IIP). In short, the people who invested in Malta to become new citizens are paying for an initiative that will greatly benefit Maltese families at a time when they need it most.
The €5 million will be used to buy apartments in central London, located close to Great Ormand Street Hospital. I think any parent will appreciate how great such an initiative is. Our health service is free, even when a child has to be flown to London for specialised treatment, but the costs for family members, who need to be at the patient’s side, add up.
Puttinu Cares has provided a home away from home for many families over the years but demand for their exisiting 25 flats in Sutton in south London far outstrips supply. And, of course, these days Puttinu helps adults as well as children.
About 60 to 90 patients travel every month. Some relatives, who can’t be accommodated in Sutton, stay with the Franciscan Sisters. They pay £35 per person per night for a basic room with a shared bathroom. For a mother and father staying with a child for a month that amounts to £2,000. And treatment can last months.
With this project, Puttinu Cares will have 40 modern flats for Maltese families, situated within walking distance of Great Ormand Street and other hospitals. Each stay will be free, no matter its length.
Initiatives such as this demonstrate the value IIP has been to the country. It has brought in €1.5 billion to the Maltese economy in the past six years, paying for a range of initiatives including €1m for the latest technologies for invasive interventions in cardiac surgery at Mater Dei and €10 million for health centre improvements including a complete refit in Gzira, Għaxaq and other health centres. It’s not just the health sector that is benefiting; many other projects are in tow including €50 million being spent on social housing.
The IIP is closing and has been replaced by a residency scheme that can lead to citizenship. Under the new regulations, an applicant must be resident in Malta for three years before applying for citizenship. Or, through a higher investment in the country, this can be done after one year.
Residents, who eventually decide to apply for citizenship, will be subject to an eligibility assessment. At this stage, they will be subject to due diligence, using the resources of police and international agencies. A resident who fails this requirement will not be able to proceed further.
As well as investing up to €750,000 an applicant must buy or rent a property. The minimum value of property purchased is increasing from €350,000 to €700,000. In addition, a philanthropic donation of €10,000 will be mandatory.
There have been certain critics within the European Union, but the reality is that the EU welcomes 600,000 new citizens annually. Of these, fewer than 1,000 are beneficiaries of citizenship-by-investment. In other words, they make up 0.1% of the total new EU citizenry per year.
Our new scheme will be limited to 1,500, to ensure quality and excellence. It is just a drop in the ocean, but for beneficaries such as Puttinu Cares, the financial support that results is significant and something we should all be grateful for.