Until late summer of last year, the scheme to extend Monaco’s land area by some 275,000 m2 off Fontvieille was still being vigorously hyped by the Principality’s PR machine. Then, a few days into December, it was announced that the project had been cancelled until further notice. Particular grief was felt by trendy architects Norman Foster and Daniel Libeskind who had hoped to get their share of the €10 billion involved. So was this a simple result of the current economic crisis? After all, as Prince Albert has said, “Monaco will not be spared.”

But that PR machine won’t allow this to stand alone. The official explanation of the decision to scrap the scheme emphasizes the need for “further assurance that the environmental consequences are minimised as far as possible”. That sounds very good but Prince Albert – a UN “champion of the earth” – is deeply committed to environmental concerns and earlier seemed satisfied that there was no major need for anxiety. As an independent marine biology expert told us (see Reporter, n° 128): “Monaco’s wish to expand, if implemented responsibly, is perfectly legitimate. It just seems unreasonable to abandon this project to protect a limited number of seahorses.” Indeed. So forget the seahorses. At the last count the Principality had 85 financial institutions – 41 banks and 44 asset management companies. Most of these are deeply implicated in a globalised financial system. As a young Scandinavian banker, recently let go, told us: “I’ve seen it – managements are running scared and don’t tell me the government isn’t very worried too.” Meanwhile, the SBM has decided to go big time into online gambling.

From Riviera Reporter Issue 131: Feb/March 2009

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