10 years later - we are all European now

Ten years ago, the Labour media – of which present Labour leader Joseph Muscat formed an integral part – warned of apocalyptical scenarios of Sicilians invading Malta to take our jobs. Ten years down memory lane – much to the delight of our culinary inclinations – some Sicilians did in fact come to set up shop in Malta to sell their cannoli.
However, Malta can boast of having one of the lowest unemployment rates in the continent.
And while 10 years ago, an unofficial billboard was set up on a Labour club warning that EU membership would pave the way for abortion and gay marriages, the Labour Prime Minister now equates European values with the government’s liberalising drive which culminated in the introduction of civil unions. This time around, it was the Nationalists who revived the spectre of abortion as the next step after civil unions.
In reality, the introduction of civil unions does represent the spirit of openness found in several EU member states for which some yes voters aspired to.
But it ultimately has little to do with EU membership, which is limited to themes covered by binding legal treaties.
Moreover, even when it comes to civil liberties, Malta remains one of the few countries not to allow life-saving abortions – a theme not covered by EU treaties, but which isolates us from most of the civilised world.  
Still, while practically everyone in the political mainstream professes his or her European credentials, discussion on the future of Europe following its greatest crisis is largely absent in the local debate.
For although both parties shun Euroscepticism and the PN gives the impression of being more pro-European simply due to Labour’s Eurosceptic past, it unclear where the two main parties position themselves in the debate between sovereignists, EU realists and federalists and to what extent they are willing to share Malta’s sovereignty with others.  

Milking a cash cow
Moreover while the Maltese are eager for a federalist solution on irregular migration –with all parties agreeing that burden sharing should be mandatory – and calling for a revision of the Dublin II convention, successive governments are keen on protecting niches like Malta’s budding financial sector from the incursions of a more federal Europe.  In many ways both parties seek an a la carte membership.
Just as Europe was sold to us by the yes camp as a financial cow to be milked for €100 million, the party which then opposed membership, promises to bring more money Malta’s way by selling Maltese passports, whose added value comes from membership in Schengen and the European Union.
Amidst the citizenship controversy, Muscat himself sold the IIP scheme as a way of getting more funds than those offered by the EU. Moreover, these would come with no strings attached.
Ironically, the same leader who prides himself on professing European values on themes like civil unions, champoined a scheme condemned by the European Parliament for going against the spirit of European values.
Muscat’s approach to Europe also remains highly ambivalent. His threat to use pushbacks of migrants to make Europe “wake up and smell the coffee” suggested that he is still tempted by acts of national bravado even if he is pragmatic enough to avoid confrontation, ultimately preferring the path of closer collaboration with Italy on migration and revising the citizenship scheme by introducing a residency clause instead of going on the warpath with the Commission.
Though engaging in this kind of balancing act is certainly not risk-free, as evidenced by the verbal abuse directed by Labour supporters against Commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom on her Facebook page.
What such incidents show is that Euroscepticism still thrives beneath the veneer of European values, and can still be deployed in moments of political difficulty.

The benefits
What is certain is that, despite joining the European Union – and subsequently, the Eurozone – at the worst possible moment (i.e., on the eve of a financial crisis), EU membership has largely benefited Malta through funding which made basic amenities like sewage treatment plants a reality.
One tangible effect of membership was that Malta no longer disposes sewage directly into the sea to the detriment of bathers and its tourism product. Even on immigration, Malta’s budgetary allocation within the EU’s 2014-2020 multi-annual financial framework stands at almost €80 million. Had Malta remained outside the Union, it would have faced the problem alone. For while Malta could have opted to remain out of the union, it could not change its geographical position.
Another tangible effect of membership is the greater mobility of students in the European Union, something that has left a marked impact on the cultural horizons of young Maltese. EU membership has also constrained the spending of national governments, thus bringing with it a greater fiscal discipline.

The disappointments
Still, despite these positive aspects, the greatest social changes in the past decade – such as the introduction of divorce and civil unions – came not as a result of EU membership but due to a variety of local factors.  Moreover although the EU was sold as the panacea to Malta’s environmental problems, the 2006 extension of building boundaries took place just two years after Malta joined the EU.  The government was also cleared of any breach of EU directives following a lengthy investigation by the EU commission.
Moreover despite relatively low levels of unemployment Malta retains a high rate of under employment, especially among women. It is only through the present government’s decision to invest in free childcare that this problem is being addressed.
Even on something as basic as the EU-wide ban on spring hunting, Malta has managed to apply derogation for the past 10 years.
Although the European Commission did take Malta to the European Court of Justice in 2007, the ECJ’s 2009 verdict did not change the Maltese government decision to allow spring hunting. Ultimately, as was the case with divorce, change may come through a popular referendum.
Moreover, despite the uproar generated by the IIP scheme, the deal clinched by the Maltese government gives an EU certification to what effectively amounts to the commodification of European citizenship legitimised by a one-year residence of convenience. Still, in itself the commission’s willingness to reach a deal with Malta dispels the myth of a European super state bent on trampling the rights of nation states.