Friends of the Earth Malta has presented a series of demands to prospective Maltese candidates before the MEP election.
These demands are the outcome of the “Future of Europe Workshop” held earlier this month, where people of all ages and backgrounds came together to discuss and brainstorm issues and solutions related to our current environmental situation, both in Malta and in Europe. The outcome of this workshop was to allow participants to feel comfortable enough to share their honest ideas and opinions and together with the facilitators to create a well-thought out demands list for each topic discussed on the day – Food, Agriculture and Biodiversity; Climate Change and Energy; Waste and Resource Use, Water and Transport.
Demands include [1] :
- More support for small scale farmers, young farmers, and for new farmers to enter the sector and be able to access arable land
- Enacting of national and EU wide Pollinator strategy
- Setting up of a body attached to the court of justice to monitor that the EU 2030 standards are met.
- Implement policy coherence in a way that other policies do not harm climate change goals.
- Tackle the issue of food waste – The cost of food waste in the EU is estimated at €143 billion each year, equivalent to the annual operational budget of the EU.
- Enact binding EU-wide target to reduce the consumption of food containers and cups.
- Member States to implement and not revise the Water Framework Directive (WFD) – The WFD obliges Member States to prevent deterioration and achieve good status for all of Europe’s freshwater bodies by 2027 at the latest. The implementation of measures under the WFD will contribute to the objectives of the Nature Directives, if implementation is coordinated.
- Give the streets back to people – Priority should be given to pedestrians.
- Free public transport initiatives
Many citizens are feeling left behind and unheard when it comes to putting laws and practices in place. People feel that the economic and financial interests of the wealthy are prioritised over the common good.
Friends of the Earth Malta wants to use the upcoming EU elections to send a loud message that we will not be divided. We believe in open, tolerant, compassionate communities and in European solidarity and cooperation. We also want to say clearly that Europe needs a radical change of direction. Equality, care for our environment, and social justice should be at the heart of how we live – not profits or the interests of big business.
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