Labour Party conference approves environment plan

The Malta Labour Party annual general conference yesterday approved a 36-page document outlining the party's environment policy for the country.

The plan was presented to various members of the civil society, constituted bodies and non-governmental organisations over the past months and underlines the party's outlook on land use, energy, water, waste management, the development of golf courses, the Malta Environment and Planning Authority, the use of the coast and issues dealing with Gozo.

Another document that was up for discussion yesterday and which is expected to be approved when the conference, which started on Thursday, comes to an end tomorrow is about tourism.

Several interventions were made by delegates before the conference approved the environment plan with a show of hands. Speeches were made by MPs Leo Brincat and Joe Brincat and by deputy leader for party affairs Michael Falzon.

Dr Falzon said both documents indicated that Labour's priorities were closely linked to the economic, social and environmental aspects of life in Malta.

A clean environment would enable the Maltese to live a better life under a Labour government, and it was the same environment which would attract tourists and therefore generate economic growth, Dr Falzon said.

He called on Mepa to be of service to citizens and not to hide behind bureaucracy, adding that preferential treatment for the few was unacceptable.

Dr Falzon said the document was a strong guide for the MLP and it should pave the way for the party to explain its policies to the people, as this would enable it to win the coming election.

Referring to tourism, deputy leader for parliamentary affairs Charles Mangion said the country needed people who are not afraid of making decisions, adding that the MLP was offering a series of alternatives while in opposition.

Perhaps the environment got little attention in the past, even under Labour governments, but it was vital today especially to sustain tourism, Dr Mangion said.

The Malta Tourism Authority, which was established in 1999 to attract additional thousands of tourists per year, could help the country earn an extra Lm90 million a year in foreign exchange if it were to reach its targets. But the government's contradictory policies on the environment were scaring tourists away.

Dr Mangion added that the country lacked a culture of accountability saying the government was the first not to shoulder responsibility for the problems the country was facing.

Targets should be set and once it is established that someone has not reached those targets "one should be removed from one's post", he said.

The discussion on the tourism plan will resume at 10 a.m. tomorrow followed by a vote and a closing address by Labour leader Alfred Sant.