In a recent interview with Business Today (14 May), Professor Edward Scicluna made an incisive observation about the fuzzy statistics which are emerging from government agencies, viz. the National Statistics Office, the Central Bank and the Ministry of Finance. He draws attention to the divergence between economic data and forecasts published by these agencies and the EU’s own figures. The EU is not relying on Malta’s version of the state of the economy, and has warned Malta to set its house in order.
It is worrying that government and its agencies have been issuing a spate of misleading statistics. In addition to the questionable data to which Professor Scicluna referred, it is worth noting that the Prime Minister recently claimed that the government had created several thousand new jobs, a claim which was subsequently quashed by the Minister for Social Policy. Shortly after, the MHRA vehemently belied the NSO’s figures regarding the consumer price index and hotel guest nights.
It would appear that vagueness is being deliberately applied to obscure reality, as in the case of the much touted assistance which the Ministry of Finance has made available to ailing firms. When the real figures finally emerged they proved to be minimal.
With official data being so unreliable, it is not surprising that firms and individuals feel insecure about their future, a state of affairs which leads to further contraction of economic activity. A scenario of questionable statistics distorts the truth about many issues, among which the important question of whether Malta is an EU net beneficiary or contributor.
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