Malta [The UK and its neighbours : views across Europe]

Abstract

Malta was a British colony for 160 years, before becoming independent in 1964. Although the relationship with its former colonial power could sometimes be fraught, especially in the 1970s when Malta moved towards neutrality – the last British military bases closed in 1979 – the relationship has remained close. After Brexit, Britons still make up the largest group of tourists visiting the islands and the UK is second only to Italy – Malta’s nearest neighbour – as a destination for the Maltese. English remains an official language, British media still has a presence on the islands, and UK citizens are the most numerous ‘foreign residents’, though they fall to second place if we discount those with dual citizenship. While the Maltese government was dismayed by the Brexit vote in 2016, the then prime minister stated that he wanted Malta to be the ‘most English-friendly country in the EU’. Malta sought to create a framework that would enable UK citizens and businesses to remain on the islands, building on the bilateral agreements that were in place with the UK before Malta joined the EU in 2004, in particular in the area of healthcare. Politicians referred to these pre-membership agreements as the bedrock for future cooperation, with the proviso that these would continue to run as long as they did not undermine Malta’s obligations as an EU member state.