Hunting abuse would not be tolerated, Karmenu Vella told MEPs yesterday as he faced a three-hour grilling session at the European Parliament.

His statement on hunting was the strongest commitment he gave MEPs and the closest he came to being assertive.

On a myriad of questions that ranged from shark protection to bees, air pollution to sustainability, Mr Vella generally lacked commitment in his replies on the environmental portfolio.

But although his performance may not have gone down well with environmentalists, Mr Vella’s non-confrontational style of politics and affable personality may have endeared him to others, who felt they could work with him.

Drawing on his upbringing in Żurrieq, which he described as a small fishing village, Mr Vella was more confident in addressing the fisheries portfolio, giving direct replies to a number of very technical questions raised.

He was the first commissioner-designate along with Sweden’s Cecilia Malmström to take part in the hearings that will continue until next week.

At the end there will be one vote by MEPs to approve the next European Commission as a whole.

It was Mr Vella’s confession that he did not have an answer to everything that raised some eyebrows when he was asked about a freeze on environmental legislation.

“If I don’t give any commitment today it is not because I have been instructed to do so by Jean Claude Juncker but I cannot be expected to know everything and give commitments unless I am 100 per cent certain that I can deliver tomorrow,” he told a Green MEP.

Asked by Times of Malta after the hearing whether he felt the admission could have put him in a bad light, Mr Vella said he was being “genuine”.

“If I came here trying to give the impression I know everything about the two dossiers I was given, they [MEPs] would have probably not believed me… I have a lot of work to do and look forward to work closer with MEPs,” he told a press conference after the hearing.

MEPs had expressed concern on Mr Vella’s commitment to safeguard the environment in a commission skewed in favour of economic growth and job creation.

Mr Vella tried to put minds at rest when he disagreed with a statement that put the environment on a collision course with the economy in what was probably his strongest reply on sustainability.

“I don’t see the way forward as a fight between economists and environmentalists. We have to change this. Maybe today we have an expired economy because when it was planned the environmentalists were not part of it. The environment has to be part and parcel of the initial decision,” he said.

‘My commitment to enforce legislation’

As expected, hunting featured at least three times as MEPs sought his views on the proposed reform of the Birds Directive by making direct reference to the hunting situation in Malta.

While insisting he was not a hunter or a trapper, Mr Vella told a UK MEP that she was “preaching to the converted” when speaking about the lack of hunting controls in Malta.

Drawing from his experience as tourism minister, Mr Vella told MEPs he used to receive a lot of complaints from visitors to Malta about hunting.

“My commitment is to do whatever it takes to enforce legislation not only in the country I know best [Malta]. I will not defend anyone who breaks the directives,” he said.

Mr Vella carefully avoided commenting on Malta’s application of exceptions to allow a limited spring hunting season and the trapping of finches in autumn, which drew him criticism from Birdlife, a bird conservation group.

“I say outright that I condemn any illegal hunting… it is not my role to defend Malta. My interests are the interests of the EU,” he said, adding that abuse could not be tolerated.

He noted that the Birds Directive remained unchanged for 35 years and its interpretation rested with decisions taken by the European Court of Justice in at least 30 cases.

“Science has made giant steps since 1979 [when the Birds Directive came into force]. Reviewing is not revising… I have no idea to deregulate or demote the directives,” he said when asked about the proposed merging of the Birds and Habitats directives.

In his concluding remarks, Mr Vella went off script, speaking about the two heroes in his life and producing a photo of his grandchildren, Adam and Jake.

“If anything, I want to leave a better future for my two heroes, Adam and Jack,” he said.

Reacting to Mr Vella’s answers, Nationalist Party MEP David Casa said he was well prepared on the fisheries portfolio but less so on the environment. “At times, I felt uncomfortable [with his replies on the environment],” Mr Casa said.

On a more positive note was Labour MEP Alfred Sant. “It was a convincing and honest performance based on Karmenu Vella’s personal experience.

“He convinced people that he will work in a serious manner.”

Nationalist MEP Roberta Metsola noted that Mr Vella was well prepared on hunting, sustainability and fisheries.

Therese Comodini Cachia, the third Nationalist member in the European Parliament, said Mr Vella showed that, as a commissioner, he would be capable of discussing issues with MEPs.

“There was criticism that in some of his replies Mr Vella lacked detail but I expect him to gain more knowledge on his vast portfolio when he takes up office,” Dr Comodini Cachia said.

The Nationalist MEPs said they had worked within the EPP group to garner support for Mr Vella’s nomination.

Peter Liese, the EPP coordinator on the environment committee, an influential MEP, described Mr Vella’s performance as “satisfactory” in a tweet after the grilling.

Buzzwords

I take note of your concern/I share your concern – he used this with almost every MEP, showing empathy and very typical of his political style that tries to sideline confrontation.

Sustainability – keyword he had to use to show merging the environment with other portfolios was not going to dilute its importance but put the environment at the heart of economic decisions.

Thank you for that question – this was the hallmark of his endearing attitude.

The country I know best – this was the standard replacement for Malta. It is probably the diplomatically correct way of not upsetting other member states by mentioning your country by name.

Declaration of interests

Posts held in foundations over the past 10 years

• Member: Labour Party and Vodafone Malta Foundation, a charitable foundation.

• Honorary president: Queen Victoria Band Club, Żurrieq; Birżebbuġa Aquatic Sports Club; Żurrieq Boċċi Club.

• Chairman: Maltese Turkish Business Council.

Company posts held over the past 10 years

• Chairman Orange Travel Group.

• Non-executive director Betfair, an online betting company.

• Executive chairman: Mediterranean Construction Ltd and Corinthia Hotels International.

Financial interests

• Shares in Multi Joint Projects, a property development company. His wife also owns shares in the company.

Property other than residential

• Part-owner in blocks of apartments in Qormi, Birkirkara and Żejtun.

• Part-owner of a plot of land in Żurrieq.

• Owner of a flat in Birżebbuġa and St Paul’s Bay.

• Owner of plots of land in Żurrieq, Qrendi and St Thomas Bay, Marsascala.