Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1107757
OPINION 22 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 21 APRIL 2019 The ideal MEP is a bridge-builder, a nerd and a good communicator Peter Agius Peter Agius is a PN candidate for the European Elections THERE are certain important areas where I truly believe we should be do- ing, better for our country. These are issues that are very close to my heart, issues which I believe will have serious future repercussions, and issues that I believe that I can make a difference in. 1. Hastening Equality It is unfortunate that many people believe that gender equality has been achieved when the numbers speak for themselves. In Malta for instance, only 10 of the 67 House of Representa- tives are women and only 11% of those running for the 2017 national election were female. In addition, there's plenty of research that shows that prejudice against women is still widespread. For example an experiment conducted in 2014 by PNAS (Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA) proved beyond doubt that inves- tors prefer entrepreneurial ventures pitched by attractive men as opposed to women. Another experiment proves that identical work applications from men are rated better than those coming from women. There's evidence that proves that women face prejudice even with children as from a young age, children, whether male or female, start to perceive men to be more generally capable than women. If nothing is done to shock the system it will take 20 to 40 years for women to break through the societal structures that make it particularly hard for women to achieve equality; I want to change that. 2. Strengthening industrial relations Being an employment lawyer by profession with more than 15 years' experience practising law both in Malta and in the UK, I know how important healthy industrial relations are to any economy. In Malta, more than 30,000 people are self-employed, and these individuals, who are usually small to medium entrepreneurs, form the back- bone of our prosperous society. Not only do they generate a lot of business and employ others, but they also con- tribute heavily to the nation's economy at large. I am specialised in employment law and concentrate primarily on disputes concerning employment matters repre- senting both employers and employees in Industrial Tribunal cases and my aim is to protect this very important pillar of our society by continuing to work closely with employers, employ- ees and policy makers that affect their livelihood. 3. Protecting the environment and animal rights For years, environmental and animal activists have been trying their hardest to change things in these areas. They fight to influence public opinion to encourage cruelty-free living, change public policy and to pass laws that pro- tect the environment and animals. Notwithstanding, the exploitation, neglect and abuse of our environ- ment and animals, remains unabated. I believe that these issues are not being given the importance they deserve at European level and the next MEP elec- tions will determine Europe's politi- cal priorities for the next five years. If elected I will push these issues forward the best way I can, in fact I was the first Maltese MEP candidate to sign the EU Animal Welfare Pledge. 4. Strengthening democracy To my mind democracy is about rights and not personal favours. The European Parliament elections take place once every five years, and cur- rently about 700 members of the European Parliament represent some 500 million people from 28 member states. Malta faces many challenges at European level, from migration and the protection of our borders, to cyber security and data privacy as well as cli- mate change, so it would be extremely naïve to leave our representation up to faith. I strongly believe that we need to safeguard our position, before it is too late, and the best way to do this is to do our duty and vote for the best candidates to represent us. For me, this translates into running for office, despite the hardships that it brings with it. The why and why not Roselyn Borg Knight Dr Roselyn Borg Knight is a Nationalist Party MEP candidate THE race is on and the future does not look plain sailing enough for us. The horizon promises battleships heading for our shores. The European socialists' proposal for a Europe-wide tax stunting our services industry is just one of those battleships. The Euro- pean Commission has a stock of other proposals coming up with a direct effect on our islands' competitiveness and growth prospects, not to mention the dire need to budge the Union into a real solidarity with frontier state like Malta on irregular migration. Our choice on 25 May will have a bearing on our youths, we could expand their horizons through educa- tional programmes whereby the EP is preparing a threefold budget increase. Our participation rate is 5% right now – we should at least treble that. Our choice should help many strug- gling sectors facing the full brunt of the single market, with very little of its protection to those who feed us, the farmers, herders and fishermen. Our choice on 25 May should get us closer to exploit the EU manna for our busi- nesses and society at large. We can do much better on EU funding opportuni- ties. Our citizens are well aware of what our political parties say. Political sermons get a lot of attention in Malta and we are not short of controversies dominating the headlines. I want to share a few tips on choos- ing the best six MEPs to represent us in Europe, with a focus on the skills required to move things in Brussels. A big caveat first. I am a candidate myself, so I might be leading you to- wards my shop. A second one however, I am a European official with direct negotiation experience in the Council of Ministers and the European Parlia- ment, so I sort of have an obligation to communicate the EU machinery as well. Probably the first quality that sets the best MEPs apart is their ability to build bridges within their own political group and with other political groups. The Nationalist Party MEPs sit within a group composed of more than 40 national parties. Bridging interests between them is already a huge chal- lenge. The EPP alone does not com- mand a majority of MEPs in none of the committees where amendments are submitted to change EU laws, so we need to bridge over to other MEPs from other political families. You want an MEP to change things for Malta through Brussels? Look for a bridge- builder! The second quality is a nerdy eye for detail and technicalities. Coming from Malta our MEPs cannot expect that in- dustry or NGOs pick up developments before it's too late. It will be up to our six to detect new developments and in- tervene in good time before all negotia- tions are crystallised. We need MEPs who can smell one year ahead that the Commission is working on some- thing with impact for Maltese work or business. You want an MEP who can advance your career prospects? Look out for the nerd in the lot! Last but not least, our MEPs need to be good communicators. This goes beyond their chance of re-election. What happened in the UK is a com- munication tragedy. The British people owe a huge deal to EU membership. It allowed them to keep their feeling of ruling the world after losing the empire. They ruled the game in many ways in Brussels and yet, they voted to leave for they were led there through daily misunderstandings spun over by the media. Let's be clear. Malta is not immune from this phenomenon. Our MEPs have a duty to communicate the whole truth on EU, and where there is a rosy bit to pass on, they should make sure to pass it on as well. So if we want to keep on enjoying our EU benefits, let's make sure to choose those who can best change things in Brussels and then be able to transmit them to us here in Malta. I think I might have some of the qualities mentioned above. That's why I accepted the call of the Nationalist Party to run for MEP. In all fairness, I see these qualities in a good number of my colleagues too, from different parties. We at PN probably have the advantage of not having to defend the indefensible actions of a government in direct confrontation with some of the EU's main values. The scrutiny is now in your good hands!