It is not usual to hear politicians express honest, straightforward views on delicate issues. But the recent Times of Malta event in which Finance Minister Clyde Caruana was questioned by journalists, trade unionists and business leaders was a welcome exercise in straight talking. The management of the economy has always been challenging but external factors are presenting unprecedented problems on many fronts. One also needs to add to the mix endemic local problems that always seem to defy any solution. Caruana must be complimented for his no-nonsense responses to most of the questions raised at the event, even if a streak of wishful thinking was, at times, quite evident. The most striking comment made by the minister was that, in 2019, when real growth was around six per cent, just 35 to 40 per cent of companies declared a profit. This must have come as no surprise to many. But the minister’s comment – that there is a cultural element to this that defines us as ‘a nation of tax dodgers’ – is a candid acknowledgement of the prevailing administrative mindset of weak tax collection and anti-tax-evasion enforcement. The cost-of-living-adjustment (COLA) mechanism is bound to be a...
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