Malta set to receive €50 million increase in climate change funding

Malta is set to receive a significant boost in funding for its efforts to combat climate change, because of a provisional agreement on the Social Climate Fund.

The country will see a ten-fold increase in funding under the agreement, which was reached as part of the EU's climate package.

Nationalist MEP David Casa had been leading negotiations on the Social Climate Fund for the past year, and was able to secure a significant increase in funding for Malta.

Under the original proposal, Malta was set to receive €5 million in EU funds. However, under the new agreement, the country will receive in excess of €55 million through the Social Climate Fund, including the national co-financing share.

The Social Climate Fund will be financed by revenues from the EU's flagship climate policy, which was agreed upon as a package deal that included the Social Climate Fund.

Measures in the Fund will be funded in large part by EU funds, with a minority co-financing rate by member states.

Casa praised the Maltese Government for their coordinated efforts to secure the deal, and thanked the staff of the Permanent Representation to the EU for their professionalism.

"The point of the Fund is to bring down energy bills and to move away from fossil fuels. We can achieve both by investing in energy efficiency and renewable energy," said Casa.

"With the Social Climate Fund, I want to see investments reach citizens with more solar panels, more efficient appliances, better insulation, and greener alternatives to transport."

The provisional agreement will now need to be confirmed by a vote in the European Parliament.