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18 maltatoday EXECUTIVE EDITOR Matthew Vella MANAGING EDITOR Saviour Balzan Letters to the Editor, MaltaToday, Vjal ir-Rihan, San Gwann SGN 9016 E-mail: dailynews@mediatoday.com.mt Letters must be concise, no pen names accepted, include full name and address maltatoday | SUNDAY • 10 MARCH 2019 11 March 2009 Unions in last ditch appeal as Parliament clashes over tariffs REPRESENTATIVES of Malta's major trade unions gathered yesterday outside Parliament in Valletta, handing out letters to individu- als MPs in a last-ditch attempt to pressure the House into withdrawing the latest water and electricity bills during the debate which opened that same evening. "We appeal to you as a representative of the people in Parliament... to take a position to revise the tariffs downwards – considerably downwards – with retroactive effect," was the letter's main message to individual MPs, bear- ing the seals of 11 unions: the Malta Union of Teachers, UMASA, the General Workers' Union, MUMN, the Airline Pilots' Associa- tion, AAE, UT&C, UHBC, the Union of Cabin Crew, as well as representatives of profession- als in the public service. "This should also be done in view of the fact that the price of oil has dropped considerably, and is now at the same level as the price before the surcharge was introduced." The unions also complained about discrimi- nation in the way the eco-reduction thresholds were drawn up. "Bear in mind that the peo- ple – especially workers, pensioners and their families – will be closely following the position you adopt in Parliament as a representative of the people." Speaking on behalf of the unions, GWU general secretary Tony Zarb expressed disap- pointment that the expected reduction in util- ity tariffs, predicted by both the GWU and the Labour Party in recent weeks, failed to materi- alise before the debate got under way. ... Opening the debate, Dr Muscat slammed the government for trying to justify its tariff revisions by presenting its own costings, which he claimed "made no sense." Echoing the unions' concerns, the Labour leader criticised the eco-reduction thresholds as being high out of reach for most or- dinary citizens; and also accused the government of failing to honour a promise to lower the rates, if oil prices fluctuated by more than 15%. But the main thrust of Muscat's speech was to claim that Enemalta's funding requirements were now 33% less than originally estimated: leaving the government with no further excuse to resist the unions' demands, and lower the tariffs to the equivalent of 50% the previous surcharge. For his part Dr Lawrence Gonzi defended his government's position, arguing that Dr Mus- cat's suggestions, in the context of the current economic crisis, would erode Malta's competi- tivity and endanger thousands of jobs. The Prime Minister reminded his counter- part that the country was still committed to meeting its financial targets by 2015. The gov- ernment was being responsible in doing our utmost to reach these targets; not with populist rhetoric, but by gradually introducing a change in how energy is used in our country. MaltaToday 10 years ago Quote of the Week Women still unequal on their day Editorial ''She gave her office a social dimension and proved how one can act as a guide in this role to the greater benefit of the country.'' Labour MEP Alfred Sant pays tribute to outgoing President Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca ON the occasion of Women's Day last Friday, it would be remiss not to take note of the conclu- sions of the 2018 Report on Equality between Women & Men in the EU. Its findings were highlighted by Claudette Buttigieg, one of Malta's only ten (out of 71) female members of Parliament, to point that out that – for all Malta's apparent advances in gender equality in recent years – Malta still languishes at practically the bottom of almost every gender equality table. Malta places second-before-last (after Estonia) for the number of women on boards (10%). In gender gap (in employment), Malta places third from bottom. Moreover, Eurostat's more recent Gender Pay Gap Report 2019 shows that the difference in pay between males and females has continued to grow, from 7.7% in 2011 to 12.2% in 2019. So, where a man earns €100 a woman doing the same job, at the same rank, would earn €87.80... for no other reason other than being a woman. Sticking only to the issue of female representation in Parliament – which stands at a dismal 14% – the imbalance may well be a matter of some urgency. Apart from being problematic in its own right – surely, a 50-50% national gen- der split could be better approximated – it may also create additional problems of its own. At present, prime ministers have an extremely limited pool of female MPs to choose from when selecting a Cabinet; in practice, this may well end up meaning that being female, and elected to Parliament, is of itself automatic 'qualification' for a senior Cabinet post. There are other possible administrative head- aches. In the past, we have seen Malta's all-male nominees for the post of European Court judge turned down: it is arguably a matter of time be- fore external forces are exerted upon us to finally ensure a healthier balance in the House of Repre- sentatives. Clearly – as both the aforementioned inter- viewees concur – 'something needs to be done'. That said, it remains debatable exactly what. Discussions are already underway for a mecha- nism to ensure fairer representation: the model indicates apportioning an increase of MPs from the under-represented gender in the House of Representatives to two parties (and only to two parties to ensure strict equality), While the intention is no doubt commendable, this approach would prove problematic in prac- tice. For one thing, it appears a clumsy and ham- fisted way of disrupting the old boys' network. Moreover, the cross-party consensus is less clear on the subject of a quota system. Nationalist MEP Roberta Metsola argues that "gender quotas are merely a smokescreen which fail to tackle the core problem behind poor female representation in Malta; and that quotas would be a form of re- gression, which end up holding women back and create barriers for them in the future." In its defence, the Labour government can point towards the success of its own internal (temporary) quotas; but there is a difference be- tween a political party, and a Parliament elected in a democratic vote. However, the proposed system may not be addressing the root cause of the imbalance. Prior research by Prof John A. Lane has shown that our electoral system statistically offers as much chance to women as to men to be elected in the House. It may therefore be that women are ei- ther choosing not to enter politics, or face undue obstacles at party level. For example, why is Malta's House of Repre- sentatives not already catering for the family- friendly measures (such as the times for parlia- mentary sessions) that parents need to be able to pursue a political career? More importantly, why cannot MPs be full-time, well-paid representa- tives that offer a suitable salary for breadwinners and parents with young families? And why should parties which acquired more than [eg] 20% of the national vote in a previ- ous election, not be compelled to field an equal amount of men and women (or other genders) in their candidate lists, so that there is a parity at the start of the election? It is not just about politics, naturally. As recent research by Dr JosAnn Cutajar has shown this week, even educated women inside old boys' networks such as financial services are being paid less than men – at 23% the gender gap in finan- cial services is double the average gender gap. So measures that disrupt and short-circuit structures of equality are indeed necessary, but they must also start deep inside the culture of politics. *** George Vella joins an illustrious line-up of heads of state who have made the Maltese re- public proud in this ceremonial, yet significant, constitutional role. Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca gave the presi- dency the stamp of her lifelong commitment to social solidarity and the timbre of the Republic's enfranchising, emancipatory and social demo- cratic roots. At times her willingness to be close to the people and reach out to the most vulner- able, necessitated lowering the lofty seat of Head of State, and for this many people's hearts were touched. Her Republic Day speeches are funda- mental declarations that captured the spirit of the nation more adeptly than any other politi- cian. George Vella now sees thrust upon him an urgent constitutional reform that will require statesmanship, persuasion, diplomacy and the bone-deep confidence of the political veteran to deliver.Vella and Coleiro Preca belong to the same generation of socialist politicians that predate the sharp edges of Joseph Muscat's neo- liberal turnaround. Nobody can predict what the next five years of politicking might deliver to the President's desk; perhaps the most unpalatable of laws. Vella will be looked upon to serve as a guide who can impart impassioned critique of Maltese society and politics, but also the necessary sub- servience to the will of the people in the House of Representatives.