Election of four female MEPs ‘a sign of change’, says Muscat

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The election of four women candidates to the European Parliament is another sign of a changing society, according to Prime Minister Joseph Muscat.

Labour and PN elected two women each, giving the Maltese MEP delegation a majority of female MEPs. Roberta Metsola and Therese Comodini Cachia were elected on the PN ticket, while Miriam Dalli and Marlene Mizzi were elected on the PL ticket.

“This result gives me satisfaction, especially when one considers that we have a low female participation in politics. The election of these four women is also a sign of change,” Muscat said.

Addressing a brief conference at the PL’s headquarters, Muscat said he was also proud that his party got close to electing its fourth seat from Gozo. Gozitan candidate Clint Camilleri, 26, missed his seat by some 200 votes.

Saturday’s election means that Labour has increased its share of the vote in Gozo by 0.4% over the last general elections in 2013, and by 1.4% over the 2009 MEP elections.  

“These were good elections with a positive result for the Labour Party… but we will not stay basking in the glory,” Muscat said.

The Prime Minister is set to meet the Nationalist MEPs in the coming days to discuss issues. The Maltese delegation must also prepare for Malta’s Presidency of the EU in 2017. The role of the Member State holding the rotating six-month Presidency is to bridge together the EU institutions – the Council, the Commission and the EP – when there is lack of agreement on specific issues.

During a meeting of the heads of states and governments, the EU leaders agreed that the EU citizens have voted for a change.

“A clear message was sent by citizens across Europe and the EP legislature will reflect this. During the council, we discussed that our policies should change to focus more on job creation and there seemed growing consensus across the board for a new policy on immigration,” Muscat, who returned from Brussels today, said.

This year, the European Parliament elections saw far-right and even neo-Nazi parties gaining strength.