The latest goings-on in Parliament in the last fortnight will have a significant and lasting impact on our urban and remaining patches of countryside as the rushed amendments for the separation of Mepa come into force.
It has been evident all along that the government’s only target was to publish this legislation expeditiously, sidelining the usual processes especially expected in such a compelling change to environmental laws. Clearly such changes merited a closer scrutiny by the Parliamentary Committee for the Environment where the myriad of detail could have been closely examined and discussed in detail. Yet Muscat’s government dispensed with these essentials and forced the legislation at breakneck speed on the eve of parliamentary recess.
This statute-making tactic has become a norm with our present government. Labour is making a mockery of the consultative process hiding behind legalese to force its hand whenever it deems so. Labour in government are re-interpreting the democratic process as it steamrolls over the Opposition and sweet talks any dissent raised by civil society.
The consultative farce reached its pinnacle when the government ‘invited’ Malta’s leading environmental NGOs to the table of the so-called consultative process. According to Labour’s standards, this process is a two-hour debate where government representatives reluctantly take note of the deep concerns raised and proceed to do precisely nothing about it!
The disgust at the way the Mepa changeover is happening has been loudly expressed both by the Nationalist Opposition as well as the shocked environmental lobby. Din l-Art Helwa, Friends of the Earth, Flimkien ghal Abjent Ahjar and Front Harsien ODZ which did not mince their words. The chorus was essentially one of disapproval and anger at the way they had been treated. Clearly our government’s interpretation of environmental laws was to take the upper hand and no amount of dissent would change its mind. Our Prime Minister has taken an absolutist approach swamping any misgivings expressed by Opposition and civil society.
Once again, Labour in government has manipulated its electoral promises to suit itself and its cronies. Its promised Mepa policy changes so highly trumpeted before the last General Election have been transformed to accommodate the needs and wishes of the few to the detriment of everyone else. Again, Labour has not failed to disappoint. This disappointment was strongly felt in the NGOs statements on the subject which I invite readers to look up.
Sadly for our country, our politicians’ record on environmental planning has been nothing short of disgraceful. Fifty years of unrestrained ‘development’ have left indelible scars on our natural landscape. It was probably the Gonzi administration between 2008 and 2013 that really put its foot down and resolved to halt the construction juggernaut that had taken over Malta for more than half a century. Lawrence Gonzi committed himself to strengthen the legal framework of our planning agencies and somehow strengthen its powers of regulation and enforcement. Whether the PN administration was successful in this remains a difficult question to answer. The intention was certainly clear. As in all things Maltese, when it came to execution we were once more lacking. PN paid a heavy price for its mismanagement and clearly lost the support of the Green lobby in 2013.
Two-and-a-half-years down the road, it is abundantly obvious that Labour has tricked its erstwhile environmental allies. Labour’s other powerful lobby, the construction industry, has won the day. These planning changes are proof of all of this.
The ultimate aim of the Mepa separation is to create new powers for the government to take unilateral decisions unfettered by Mepa scrutiny. From now on, Muscat has effective control on the planning process and can regulate at the stroke of a pen, without the safeguards that impeded the planning process. Clearly, years of patient and painstaking effort to build a planning agency with teeth is being unceremoniously thrown out of the window.
At the stroke of a pen, important review boards within MEPA have been liquidated. Among these are the Heritage Protection Units, The Heritage Advisory Board and the Heritage Advisory Commission. The government has no intention of replacing these with anything else, clearing the path for the administration to do as it wishes. Moreover, the environmental lobby has had its representation axed on the principal boards and not only the spirit but the intent of the Aarhus Convention (of which Malta should be a proud signatory) has been kicked squarely in the teeth.
Midway into the life of this administration and the environmental facade so cleverly and cynically constructed by Labour prior to the last election is crumbling fast. The supposed ‘Gvern li Jisma’ (A government that listens) is nothing but a sham and a pre-electoral gimmick intended to scoop up votes at all costs. This Labour government has not only proved insensitive but has deceived the many whom it promised a fresh start in environmental policy and implementation.
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