We are not a tax haven: Malta PM

VALLETTA, March 27 (Xinhua) -- Malta's Prime Minister Joseph Muscat has rejected accusations that his country was a tax haven after the European Parliament (EP) adopted a resolution on Tuesday saying it operated as such.

Speaking at an economic conference on Wednesday, Muscat defended his government's track record, recalling that Malta was singled out by the European Parliament along with six other countries that "display traits of a tax haven and facilitate aggressive tax planning."

The report, drafted by the EP's tax3 committee, said that these countries have levels of foreign direct investment that "can only to a limited extent be explained by real economic activities."

"The European Parliament report, which labeled Malta as a tax haven, didn't only mention our country, but also mentioned countries such as Ireland, Luxembourg and the Netherlands," said the prime minister.

But Muscat denied outright that Malta was a tax haven. "We are not a tax haven, and the European Commission confirmed this. The European Parliament grouped together a number of countries. It does not single out Malta, and any country which offers financial services was attacked by this report."

Muscat said the focus of the resolution is on the financial services industry, as well as on banks and institutions that are not related to Malta.