Malta agrees with the rest of the EU on a 55% reduction in emissions by 2030 while demanding that the realities of countries such as Malta should not be sidelined – Prime Minister Robert Abela
At the end of the Council of European Leaders, Prime Minister Robert Abela stressed that as a country we have agreed with other countries that by 2030 we will have a 55% reduction in emissions, but we have made the strong point that we as the smallest island member state of the european union have our realities and it would be useless to put burdens on us that we cannot afford.
“While we agreed with the reduction in emissions, we also said that we are per capita, per capita, the least polluted country, so we said that this point should be taken into account. All in all, we are very pleased with what we have achieved in the final Council conclusions on the environmental issue, “said the Prime Minister.
Dr Abela said that as a country we are also happy with the conclusions on Libya, where we have reached an agreement to invest in the guarding of the Libyan Coast in order to curb the departure of immigrants from Libya and control the immigration challenge.
“As a country we were catalysts for the Council to reach an agreement on how the funding related to the rule of law will be provided and so we are now proud that we can start spending these funds in order to in the end, Maltese and Gozitan families enjoy it “, explained Prime Minister Abela.
The Prime Minister also stated that Covid was another topic that was discussed and mentioned how all the countries were talking about how now thanks to the vaccine there is finally hope. Dr Abela mentioned that the date of the authorization of the vaccine at European level, that of next December 29, was also discussed and reiterated that from that date onwards the vaccine will be distributed.
Dr Abela said that in Malta we have secured a number of doses so that all the people will be vaccinated while it was also said that the vaccination will continue to be voluntary, but the appeal is for this to be taken.
“The vaccine will be a gamechanger where when member states have started vaccinating their people, there we will be able to really start with economic and social recovery,” the Prime Minister concluded.
Photo: OPM
