Labour MEP Edward Scicluna has written to European Commissioner Olly Rehn this week requesting clarifications on various points related to the €40 million cuts in Malta’s budget.
Prof. Scicluna said he was requesting the clarifications from the EU because the government was saying nothing.
Professor Scicluna asked whether the Commission had considered the government’s forecasts to be overly optimistic, whether it had ordered the cuts or if these were a government initiative, whether it had set the cuts at €40 million and if it had specified in which sectors should the cuts be made.
“The government already had its feet in a recession when it drew up this year’s budget – but it still forecast a 2.3 per cent growth.”
He questioned where the models of economic growth were coming from and said that things could not possibly change from day to day.
Prof. Scicluna said he expected a reply within three weeks.
-di-ve.com, 16 March 2012
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Labour MEP Edward Scicluna has written to European Commissioner Olly Rehn this week requesting clarifications on various points related to the €40 million cuts in Malta’s budget.
Addressing a news conference, Prof. Scicluna said he was requesting the clarifications from the EU because they were not forthcoming from the government.
He said he asked the Commissioner whether the Commission had considered the government’s forecasts to be overly optimistic, whether it had ordered the cuts or if these were a government initiative, whether it had set the cuts at €40 million and if it said in which sectors should the cuts be made.
Prof. Scicluna said he expected a reply within three weeks.
He said that the government already had its feet in a recession when it drew up this year’s budget but it still forecast a 2.3 per cent growth.
Where were these models of economic growth coming from, he said, adding that it was unrealistic that things changed day to day.
Prof. Scicluna noted that while the government was discussing the golden rule at the EU, which was about making do without economic tricks and cosmetic accounting, it was playing with these tricks when it came to Malta’s budget. This was unacceptable. The government had to stop acting as though Malta was covered in Teflon, he said. 
Spokesman Karmenu Vella asked whether the government had actually cut €40 million or if it was hiding this sum through creative accounting.
He noted that while under Eddie Fenech Adami government debt had been growing but entities debt was going down, both were growing under Lawrence Gonzi.
Many special purpose vehicles were now being set up to take over the debt and hide it. This was cashing future income to pay existing debt, he sadi.
He brought up discrepancies between the announced capital expenditure and revenue figures and the revised and actual figures.
Giving an example, he said that while the government announced health expenditure for 2010 government at €37.6 million, it actually spent €21.7 million. And while €31.2 million were budgeted last year, the revised figure was €18.5 million.
The government was estimating revenue this year to be €300 million higher than that revised for last year. Where will this money come from, he asked.
Spokesman Charles Mangion said the government was either mistaken, incompetent or deceptive when it came up with its growth figures and budgetary estimates for this year. For all the the signs pointed to a slow down.
He called on the government to be more transparent and present more detailed explanations and justifications in Parliament.
Dr Mangion said the current minister will be remembered not just for growing debt and deficit figures but also for the failure of Enemalta and Air Malta. It was also a government which had its priorities all wrong, he said.
-timesofmalta.com, 16 March 2012
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Tnaqqis ta’ 40 miljun ewro mill-bagit ta’ Malta – onenews, 16th March 2012
L-Ewroparlamentari Laburista l-Professur Edward Scicluna ħabbar li staqsa lill-Kummissarju Ewropew Olli Rehn biex jgħid ċar x’ġara fil-każ tat-tnaqqis ta’ 40 miljun ewro mill-baġit ta’ Malta.
Il-Professur Scicluna qal dan f’konferenza tal-aħbarijiet nhar il-Ġimgħa 16 ta’ Marzu li huwa ndirizza flimkien mal-kelliema laburisti Karmenu Vella u Charles Mangion. Huwa staqsa għal liema raġuni il-baġit ta’ Malta ma kkonvinċiex lill-Kummissjoni li jista’ jilħaq il-miri li għamel l-Gvern Malti. Il-Professur Scicluna staqsa wkoll jekk il-Kummissjoni kkomunikatx mal-Gvern dwar l-evalwazzjonijiet u l-konklużżjonijiet tagħha u jekk kinitx il-Kummissjoni li ssuġġeriet li jsir it-tnaqqis u jekk kinitx l-istess Kummissjoni li speċifikat minn fejn kellu jsir it-tnaqqis. Il-Professur Scicluna qal li s-sitwazzjoni għall-Partit Laburista mhix waħda ta’ ‘business as usual’. Huwa tenna li Malta tinsab fiz-Żona Ewro fejn il-kriżi għadna ma ħriġniex minnha u b’hekk nesiġu li jkun hemm trasparenza fil-finanzi tal-pajjiż.
Il-Professur Scicluna qal li fl-Ewropa l-gvern jgħid li jaqbel mas-serjetà u trasparenza iżda fil-fatt għadu għaddej bil-prattiċi tal-passat. ‘Għalhekk’, qal il-Professur Scicluna, ‘aktar u aktar irridu naraw li jkollna baġit trasparenti u li jikkonvinċi istituzzjonijiet bħall-Unjoni Ewropea u l-Fond Monetarju Internazzjonali’.
– onenews, 16 March 2012