Environment Minister Leo Brincat yesterday said he could not guarantee that the prices of electrical goods would not increase as a result of the removal of the eco-tax.

Initial feedback from retailers indicated that the prices would go down but the minister could not say whether this would be the case with all electronic products.

“Monitoring carried out by Mepa gave good indications that prices have either remained unchanged or, as in the majority of cases, a decrease was reported,” Mr Brincat said during a visit to electronics store Soundmachine in Birkirkara.

Last month,the eco contribution on some products was removed and the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) directive came into effect. Some 650 companies had already registered to be part of the WEEE directive scheme.

We had no option but to adhere to the directive

Mr Brincat said a stakeholders group would be set up to ensure that the provisions of the directive were followed. This would be made up of the key operators of the scheme, GreenPak and GreenMt, Wasteserv, the Parliamentary Secretariat for Local Government and the Local Councils’ Association.

“The main aim of the group would be to tackle any problems immediately and to be proactive and pre-emptive when implementing changes,” Mr Brincat said.

Mepa would also be working alongside the group to ensure adherence to the provisions of the directive.

Human resources at the planning authority were being strengthened to ensure an effective and efficient enforcement arm, Mr Brincat said. Asked if products which had not previously fallen within the eco-tax system would be marked up, he said this could not be avoided as Malta had no choice but to implement the EU directive.

“This was not a matter of choice but of necessity. We had no option but to adhere to the WEEE directive because Malta was going against EU regulations. The EU would have taken infringement procedures against us.”

The eco contribution was introduced in 2004 and was based on the polluter pays principle. Importers funded the recycling and treatment of a number of goods, including beverage containers and fridges. Over the years, retailers and importers had complained that the tax put them at a disadvantage with online retailers.