If elected to office, a Nationalist government will create a new authority that will be responsible for controlling the country's population levels, PN leader Alex Borg said. This authority will publish a Labour Market Research Study, launch a Malta Populations Level Plan featuring population growth forecasts, and write up a National Capacity Plan to ensure that infrastructure is adequate for population levels.
Borg and PN's security spokesperson Darren Carabott on Thursday addressed the media in a press conference related to its pitches to better control population levels across the Maltese islands.
Alongside the foundation of a new authority, other proposals relate to improving the efficiency behind the processing of Maltese and EU nationals as well as third-country nationals (TCNs). Among these proposals relate to bolstering national security, which tie into PN's announced security proposals from just two days prior.
In this press conference, Borg made reference to population forecasts made public by Finance Minister Clyde Caruana, who had previously shared that the population of people in Malta should increase to 800,000 by 2040. He said that this would mean that in 14 years' time, the Maltese population would be split evenly between 400,000 native Maltese and 400,000 foreign residents, through the importation of "another 230,000 foreigners."
Carabott said that "we don't want Clyde Caruana's population forecast to come to fruition," though guaranteed that, through the PN's intervention to mitigate the country's population growth, "there won't be shocks to the economy."
Carabott said that this new authority will be responsible for maintaining population levels and that it will work on three national plans.
The first plan is the publication of the government's Labour Market Research Study. Carabott stated that despite the Opposition's and journalists' requests for the government to publish this study, the government has kept this document hidden. He said that as a result, "the government is painting a gray area here" and that the competences and overall nature of the foreigners entering the Maltese islands for work remain unknown.
Secondly, this authority, once set up, will be launching a Malta Populations Level Plan. This plan will go in-depth on population forecasts, that will be sector-specific, on work and residence permits. These projections will help authorities to easily identify which economic sectors require more manpower or not, so that population growth can be better controlled without causing economic collapse, Carabott said.
When asked whether the Nationalist Party has any targeted population projections in its hands already, Carabott said that the PN will work on these projects "from the start," should it be elected to govern the nation come the end of the month.
Thirdly, this authority will also give direction on the needs of national infrastructure, to guarantee that infrastructure is adequate to surrounding population levels. This will be done through the launch of a "National Capacity Plan."
When asked why the Nationalist Party is proposing the establishment of a brand new authority to carry out these plans, instead of using existing resources, Carabott said that this authority will carry out plans that do not yet exist - such as the population levels plan - while carrying our new responsibilities that do not fall under the remit of existing bodies.
PN wants to split Identità's functions into two one-stop shops: one for TCNs, another for Maltese and EU citizens
Beyond this new population-related authority, other proposals announced during this press conference aim to reduce bureaucracy on two fronts: for employers employing TCNs and for those going through the Identità agency for documentation.
If the Opposition wins the coming general election, it will look to split Identità's offered services into two one-stop shops. The PN believes that by doing so, it will promote "a more efficient and specialised service" for all persons lining up for ID cards, passports, residence permits, etc.
One of these agencies will be solely dedicated for Maltese and European Union citizens, while the other will be exclusively for TCNs and their employers. The latter agency will process incoming foreigners' visas, residence and work permits, etc.
Both Borg and Carabott also announced that under PN leadership, all third-country nationals entering the Maltese islands for work will need to take up a basic Maltese language course within their first year in the country.
Carabott said that the rationale behind this proposal is that the PN believes it to be important for foreigners working "client-facing jobs" to be able to speak to locals in basic Maltese.
Boosted security: joint task force between police and AFM
The third array of proposals announced on Thursday aim to promote national security in line with the other measures to mitigate population growth.The Nationalist Party is proposing the setting up a specialised task force comprised of members of the Armed Forces of Malta (AFM) and the Malta Police Force that will be responsible for enforcing immigration and repatriation laws, specifically for people residing in Malta illegally, as well as combatting drug trafficking and human trafficking efforts.
Carabott said that this joint task force ties directly to the PN's previously announced security pledges, such as investing in advanced technologies, for port areas, to stop the entry of illicit substances at entry points.When asked whether this task force would result in something similar to the United States' Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers, Carabott dismissed these concerns.
He said that in practice, if enacted, it will simply be more common to see armed members of law enforcement on the ground to keep streets safe.On combatting drug trafficking, Carabott added that through PN's vision for this sector, Malta can capitalise on its insularity to better control these crimes.The PN also pledged to invest in infrastructure and human resources in Gozo, specifically towards the police and the AFM.
"There will, certainly, be more soldiers and police in Gozo to keep up with the new realities there," Alex Borg said.The final pledge announced in this press conference was to reform the Immigration Appeals Board, so that this Board is presided by a magistrate to become "more independent, transparent, and credible."
Carabott said that presently, members of the Immigration Appeals Board are selected by the concerned Ministry and that through these changes, this Board will be entrusted to the judiciary to reduce the perceived political influence within it.