Re-launching the permanent residence scheme by the end of May

The government will be re-launching the permanent residence scheme by the end of May, Prime Minister Joseph Muscat said this morning.
He said this was a scheme through which many foreigners had been coming to Malta investing in properties and it had nearly been destroyed by the previous government.
Dr Muscat, who was addressing the Labour Party's annual general conference quoted a foreign investor who said that when one came to invest in Malta, one would be faced with two certainties - a very good regulatory system of financial services and a residency system that was very inefficient.
Dr Muscat asked how could people who came to Malta to invest be sent to queue for an ID card, for example.
This was why, all related services were being elevated to a government agency for expediency and efficiency.
Dr Muscat said that a Commissioner for Simplification of rules would be appointed in the coming weeks in a bit to reduce bureaucracy.
The commissioner would have political power and an unequivocal mandate to reduce unnecessary bureaucracy he said.
The Labour leader said that his government will also be taking a good look at the problem of precarious employment.
He warned employers who had won government contracts and who were trying to exploit workers that such a situation would not be accepted. The government, he said, was observing these employers and would remember their track record if it was unable to take legal action, he said, noting that precarious conditions were mostly prevalent in security, cleaning and care giving jobs.
“You are still in time to show that that you want to work with us,” he said.
More to follow........

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