Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi chaired
a meeting of EU leaders present for the 5+5 Summit. The meeting focused on the
economic situation in the euro area in view of the European Council of October
18 and 19. French President François Hollande, Spanish Prime Minister Mariano
Rajoy, Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti, Portuguese Prime Minister Pedro
PassosCoelho and Prime Minister Gonzi reiterated their call for a swift
implementation of the decisions adopted by the European Council in June.
European
Stability Mechanism
The ESM is a permanent crisis
resolution mechanism for the countries of the euro area. The ESM issues debt
instruments to finance loans and other forms of financial assistance to euro
area Member States. The decision leading to the creation of the ESM was taken
by the European Council in December 2010. The euro area Member States signed an
intergovernmental treaty establishing the ESM on February 2 of this year.
By October 3, all euro area Member States had ratified the Treaty. The Maltese
Parliament unanimously ratified the Treaty last July 6.
Malta's
position on the MFF 2014-2020
During a meeting with European
Commission President Josè Manuel Barroso on October 6, Prime Minister Lawrence
Gonzi explained Malta's position on the EU's Multiannual Financial Framework
(MFF) for 2014-2020 and the need for a particular solution for Malta.The
Union's Cohesion Policy is important for Malta to strengthen its
competitiveness and, therefore, the Commission should understand Malta's unique
position as an island-state. Dr Gonzi also mentioned the particular situation
of Gozo and referred to his letter sent to President Barroso last July in which
he invoked the provisions of Declaration 36 of the Treaty of Accession "on the
Island Region of Gozo". In reply, Mr Barroso stated that he recognises Gozo's
particular situation and that his wish is that agreement on the MFF is reached
by the end of this year. The MFF will be the main subject of a special meeting
of the European Council to be held on November 23. President Barroso also
thanked Malta for its positive and constructive contributions within the EU.
The Commission's president also had a meeting with the Leader of the
Opposition, Joseph Muscat, which focused on Malta-EU Affairs.
24 April 2026
The Malta Chamber of SMEs, in collaboration with Transport Malta, organised the second educational session...
23 April 2026
Thanks to EU funding, the Malta Chamber of SMEs organised another free specialised training session...
22 April 2026
Earlier this week, Malta Chamber of SMEs President Mr Paul Abela attended a special event...
The Malta Chamber of SMEs represents over 7,000 members from over 90 different sectors which in their majority are either small or medium sized companies, and such issues like the one we're experiencing right now, it's important to be united. Malta Chamber of SMEs offers a number of different services tailored to its members' individual requirements' and necessities. These range from general services offered to all members to more individual & bespoke services catered for specific requirements.
A membership with Malta Chamber of SMEs will guarantee that you are constantly updated and informed with different opportunities which will directly benefit your business and help you grow. It also entails you to a number of services which in their majority are free of charge and offered exclusively to its members (in their majority all free of charge).
