Government lacks strategy on how to address climate change, PN says

Government has no vision on how to address climate change, the Nationalist Party has said.

“Whilst practically all of Europe is in a race to reduce emissions, Malta has registered the highest increase, 9%, continuing to increase our share of emissions since 2014,” spokesperson Eve Borg Bonello.

The PN said government has no vision for a carbon-neutral economy, and with the National Energy and Climate Plan setting the 2030 goal to reduce emissions by “an embarrassing 1.5%, it’s no surprise that we’re routinely put on blast by the European Commission for a lack of ambition.”

“Climate action does not exist in a bubble, this is yet another symptom of unprecedented overpopulation met with no long-term planning,” Borg Bonello said. “With roughly 58 new cars added to our roads daily, and only 3% of vehicles being electric or hybrid, it is immensely worrying that subsidies for electric vehicles are not guaranteed for 2025, not to mention the need for subsidies for alternative vehicles.”

Borg Bonello said the country needs real, concrete policies to safeguard its future, health and environment, to subsidise the way forward and future-proof the economy with real long-term investments such as a Metro system that has been pushed as a flagship proposal every election cycle only to be completely abandoned by the government, budget after budget.

“Climate change requires bold action that places human well-being at the centre of policy, ensuring a just transition that does not become a new tax on the most vulnerable. The green economy is the future of economic growth. Real investment instead of flimsy statements would ensure high-paying jobs and opportunities with massive returns, which is why other countries are investing heavily in this sector whilst the Labour Government insists on burying its head in the sand,” the PN said.

The PN said Malta and the Maltese are left with vague buzzwords and polluted air with all its disastrous implications.

“Climate change does not have to be a doom and gloom debate, if we had a competent government, it could be the basis of environmental and economic policy to usher us into a new era of long-term, sustainable success,” the statement concluded.