Update 2 | Malta to open trapping despite EC warning, hunters back government

Malta's controversial reopening of a finch trapping is being contested by the European Commission, which has sent the Maltese government a letter of formal notice to refrain the taking of birds.

But the Maltese government is defending its decision, saying it is in disagreement with the Commission’s interpretation of the application of derogation under Article 9(1)(c) of the EU Birds Directive, which would permit, under strictly supervised conditions, the live-capture of seven species of finches.

In a statement, the government in fact announced that the finch-trapping season will open as planned.

The European Commission today asked Malta to reconsider its decision to resume traditional finch trapping, in letter of formal notice, because finch trapping is prohibited under EU legislation on the conservation of wild birds.

The case concerns Malta's decision to apply a derogation to the EU Birds Directive, the cornerstone of EU nature and biodiversity policy, allowing the live capture – commonly known as trapping – of seven species of wild finches as from 2014. Member States may derogate from the requirement of strict protection, only in the absence of other satisfactory conservation solutions and if the conditions for using such derogations are met.

“As no such justification exists in this case, the Commission has decided to send a letter of formal notice, urging Malta to comply with the relevant EU rules and to respond within one month confirming that this has been done,” the EU said.

Government disagrees

The government said Malta was “prepared to defend its right to derogate throughout the infringement procedure”, echoing a previous stance in which Malta went to the EU Court of Justice to fight the Commission's case against derogating from the ban on spring hunting.

In its statement, the government said it enacted a comprehensive legal regime to regulate application of derogation. This was carried out based on a recommendation of the Ornis Committee.

“All trapping sites were screened for compliance with the legal parameters established in new legislation, and a comprehensive digital database was developed for enforcement purposes,” the government said.

It added that it had implemented necessary control measures, including state of the art real time telephonic game reporting system, a system of single-use rings, bag limits, a range of limitations and controls concerning permitted methods of capture, configuration and location of live-capturing stations, a rigorous licensing process, and other provisions.

“Penalties for offences have been increased substantially. Over sixty enforcement officers who received specialised training are being deployed to enforce derogation parameters,” Malta said.

“The government will continue to defend legitimate rights of Maltese live-capturers in full accordance with the national and EU law, and shall ensure rigorous adherence to and enforcement of derogation parameters.”

Hunters stand by government

In a reaction, hunters’ lobby FKNK said it would offer its expertise to the Maltese government if the European Commission takes the matter to the European Court of Justice.

The federation said Malta had the right to derogate from EU law and that any applied derogation was specific to member state, species, and period.

“Similar derogations that also permit live-finch capturing, are regularly and annually applied by other EU member states,” CEO Lino Farrugia said.

“Before it decided to apply the derogation, the Malta government prepared meticulous and professional studies, both scientific and technical, to ensure that the derogation satisfies all the Directive’s parameters and conditions.

“Above all, the government had obtained the Ornis Committee’s approval to apply the derogation, which committee had gone into great technical detail before it made its recommendation to government.”

Farrugia said the conditions of the derogation from the Birds Directive had been satisfied, namely, that there was no other satisfactory alternative solution to live-finch capturing; that the numbers that will be taken are very small; the methods used be highly selective; that judicious use be made from the caught birds, that are kept alive in captivity; and that strictly supervised conditions will prevail.

EU action

The letter of formal notice represents the first stage in the pre-litigation procedure, during which the Commission requests a Member State to submit its observations on an identified problem regarding the application of EU law within a given time limit.

The purpose of the reasoned opinion is to set out the Commission’s position on the infringement and to determine the subject matter of any action, requesting the Member State to comply within a given time limit.

In its monthly package of infringement decisions, the European Commission is pursuing legal action against Member States for failing to comply properly with their obligations under EU law. These decisions covering many sectors aim to ensure proper application of EU law for the benefit of citizens and businesses.

The Commission today took 140 decisions, including 39 reasoned opinions and 11 referrals to the European Union's Court of Justice.