Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1528437
THE Maltese government has chosen to derogate, yet again, from the EU's ban on the trapping of birds just a month since the EU Court said its "research derogation" on trapping seven finch species, was illegal. The controversial move follows a recom- mendation from the Ornis Committee, the consultative body that groups hunters and conservationists, and the government's Wild Birds Regulation Unit, to have the season opened. While the trapping of birds under the Birds Directive is illegal, Malta has twice been ordered by the EU Court that its der- ogations under Article 9 were not valid. In a legal notice published on Sunday af- ternoon, the government published details of its derogation under Article 9 (1) (b). The "research period" was opened on Sun- day, and will last until 20 December 2024. Reflecting previous arguments made by hunting lobby FKNK on the selected trap- ping and scientific ringing of birds by orni- thologists, the legal notice states that finch trapping is required to establish where finches that migrate over Malta in autumn come from. "Bird-ringers who participate in the na- tional ringing scheme do not use live-de- coys for the purpose of scientific ringing and control, which live-decoys are the key component of the clap-net system that 'en- ables a more selective capturing of birds than mist-nets'," the legal notice states. PAGE 4 SMALL IS BEAUTIFUL FRIDAY 25 OCTOBER 2024 • ISSUE 017 • PUBLISHED EVERY FRIDAY gozotoday €1.00 PN accuses minister of mocking Gozitans with 'phantom hospital project' Nationalist MPs Adrian Delia and Alex Borg cast doubt on Health Minister's announcement that first phase of Gozo hospital project will be completed in March 2025: 'There is no planning application and no sign of tendering' PAGE 3 Government defiantly reopens finch trapping Finch trapping, enjoyed by hundreds of Gozitan trappers, reopened despite opposition by BirdLife Malta who argue this goes against the European Court of Justice ruling