Maltese most worried about energy in Europe

A European wide survey conducted in 27 member states and four aspirant members reveals that concern on energy in highest Malta.

This result comes in the wake of a spike in energy bills and a number of nationwide power cuts over the past year.

While 42% of Maltese consider energy as one of their top two concerns, only 3% of all European citizens think likewise. The survey also shows that concern on energy has increased by 18% from Autumn to Spring.

A recent parliamentary question revealed that there was a total of 1,920 power cuts, or 3,480 hours with no electricity, from 1 January 2009 to 15 April 2010 in Malta.

The shortest power cut was of just one minute, while the longest one lasted 27.8 hours.

Finance Minister Tonio Fenech explained that these power cuts were due to repairs (334 times), switching operations (70 times) and maintenance (625 times).

The most recent long power cut furing that period took place on Good Friday (April 3), when the island was plunged into darkness at 7.35pm, with power totally restored shortly before midnight.

This followed on from another nationwide blackout that had occurred only two weeks earlier, on 22 March.

The price of electricity is also a major issue, possibly exacerbated by reports of inefficient service provided by ARMS Ltd: the private company owned by Enemalta and Water Services  Corporation, set up last year to collect monies owed to these two government entities.

In this respect also, the Eurobarometer survey tallies with a recent survey conducted by MaltaToday which shows that concern on energy bills as one of the two top concerns of the Maltese.

In fact the MaltaToday survey (conducted in August) showed that 46% consider energy bills as one of their top two concerns.  A further 3% also considered the reliability of energy provision as their top concern.

While the Eurobarometer survey puts concern on inflation at 54%, the more recent MaltaToday survey puts concern on inflation at 41% down from 51% in February.  

The European wide survey shows that inflation is cited as a major by more than half of respondents in Hungary (57%), Malta (54%), Austria (52%) and Lithuania (51%). Nordic countries, in contrast, are quite distinctive in this respect, with 20% or less of respondents mentioning inflation.

Immigration fears lessen

The Eurobarometer survey also shows concern on immigration declining by 10% between Autumn and Spring.

Surprisingly, concern on the environment (12%) is the second highest in Europe after Sweden.  The MaltaToday survey had put concern on the environment at 6%.

At 15% concern on unemployment in Malta is the lowest in Europe.  48% of all Europeans consider unemployment their top concern. The MaltaToday survey puts concern on unemployment at 16%.

The Eurobarometer survey also reveals that only 15% of the Maltese compared to 19% of Europeans expect their financial situation to improve in the next 12 months.   58% of the Maltese expect it to remain the same while 17% expect it to get worse.

But the Maltese are generally more optimistic than other Europeans with regards to the impact of the global economic crisis.

While 47% of Maltese think that the impact of the global economic crisis on jobs has reached its peak only 37% of European think likewise.  But 41% of the Maltese (compared to 55% of Europeans) think that the worse is yet to come.

79% of the Maltese think that measures to reduce the public deficit cannot be delayed.  The Maltese are more willing to tackle the public debt than Europeans in general (74%). But only 35% of the Maltese are ready to reduce their present living standards in order to guarantee the future of the next generations, according to a Eurobarometer survey. 

This contrasts with the results for the whole of the European Union which show respondents equally split (46%) on accepting sacrifices to guarantee the future for the next generations, and with 64% of the more affluent Danes and 63% of Swedes who are willing to sacrifice their present living standards.

The survey also shows that presently 47% (compared to 49% of Europeans)consider EU membership a good thing for Malta while only 21% consider it a bad thing. 

According to Eurobarometer trust in the Maltese government has fallen from 36% in Autumn to 33% in Spring.  The Maltese are more likely to trust the European Union (54%) than their own government (33%).