BirdLife Malta yesterday slammed Labour MP Joe Abela in connection with comments on hunting he made in Parliament on Monday.

Mr Abela made several erroneous claims about the NGO regarding hunting, BirdLife said.

A number of environmental organisations, including Friends of the Earth, Din l-Art Helwa, Nature Trust, Gaia, Light Pollution Awareness Group, the Ramblers' Association and Flimkien Ghal Ambjent Ahjar, supported BirdLife's criticism of Mr Abela's position and expressed solidarity with BirdLife, it said.

Mr Abela said that a BirdLife booklet entitled A Spring Guide To Reclaiming Your Countryside, distributed through The Sunday Times last April, was funded by the EU.

The campaign booklet was funded by its thousands of members "and no EU funding was tapped", Tolga Temuge, executive director of BirdLife Malta, said.

"According to Mepa, only 22 per cent of Maltese terrain consists of natural vegetation (our countryside). And 80 per cent of that limited countryside is open to hunting, leaving almost no room for the majority of people in this country to enjoy their countryside in peace," Mr Temuge continued.

He also wondered on what had Mr Abela based his comments on law enforcement and how hunters are supposedly abused.

"Malta is the only country in the EU that still allows spring hunting, has the longest hunting period in Europe, has the highest density of hunters per square kilometre and has only a mere 22 ALE officers to check illegal hunting.

"Mr Abela is more than welcome to join BirdLife Malta volunteers during the peak migration period to witness first hand the illegal killing of protected species and the occupation of the countryside," Mr Temuge said.

BirdLife called on the Malta Labour Party to declare whether Mr Abela's stand reflects the official party line on the issue of hunting.