Opposition Leader Alfred Sant said yesterday that the EU commission will be raising the matter of the St Luke’s incinerator and the implementation of the EU directive on incinerators with the Maltese government.

Dr Sant was addressing a press conference outside St Luke’s Hospital. He said that the Nationalist Party (PN) had not maintained its promise and referred to ex-Pieta` mayor Malcolm Mifsud’s repeated claims that the issue would be addressed.

Dr Sant insisted that the PN has never planned to eliminate the incinerator.

Over the past few weeks, Labour MEP Joseph Muscat examined the issue, in particular correspondence between the ex-mayor and Commissioner Dimas.

Mr Dimas had said that the incinerator was not in breach of any EU directive relating to incinerators.

However, the introduction of the new directive last December changed the situation.

In the light of the new legislation, Mr Dimas said that in the case of the incinerator at St Luke’s hospital, it was important that the Maltese government implemented the directive in order to protect both the environment and public health.

He promised that the commission will be raising the issue with the Maltese government and he did not exclude action being taken if the incinerator was not removed.

Dr Sant reiterated Labour’s intention to deal with the matter within six months of returning to government.

Mr Muscat, who was present for the press conference, said that after 10 years of promises, it was high time that a sustainable solution was found.