Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/954081
maltatoday WEDNESDAY 14 MARCH 2018 News 7 after five years of Labour, they do not account for all the changes taking place. The in- crease in disposable income, which may have served to decrease concern on the cost of living, may have been a result of the increase in the beneficiaries of free childcare, which has facilitated the par- ticipation of more women in the labour market. Although the absence of certain civil liberties has never featured in surveys on concerns, the introduction of gay marriages has not only made a segment of the population feel more included but has markedly changed the country's image from that of a laggard in the field to a world leader. The Rainbow index puts Malta at the top of Europe when it comes to LGBTI rights up from 18th place in 2012. So far progress on this front has not resulted in any conserva- tive backlash except for that which exacerbates rifts in the PN. And while concern on corruption may have slipped from a peak in 2017, deterio- rating standards in govern- ance and the culture of impu- nity have attracted increased international attention par- ticularly after the murder of journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia. The use of the power of incumbency before the last election, particularly in the planning sector is another in- dication of declining govern- ance standards. The baby and the bath water Ultimately the question fac- ing Muscat after five years is whether he could have achieved the same progress in the economy and civil liber- ties without having sacrificed so much on the environmental and good governance fronts. Muscat's own high approval rating also raises the question on whether high rates of eco- nomic growth have rendered the country more tolerant of environmental degradation and corruption. For a while Muscat may still be winning hearts and minds because voters feel that they should not throw away the baby with the bath water. However, one should also be careful that the filthy water does not become too toxic for the baby itself. 2012 2017 Number of new dwellings approved 3064 9006 Number of ODZ dwellings approved 96 136 Number of foreigners in Malta 12724 37717 Population 422509 460297* Rent of one bedroom flat 438** 760 Number of tourists 1.4 M 2 M*** Number of cars 314510 361552 Children in childcare 1500 6300 Planning permits issued in electoral campaign 321 1247**** GDP growth 2.6 5.1 Inflation rate 2.42 1.37 Rank in corruption index 43rd 46th Rank in LGBTI index 18th 1st *Population in 2016 ** average rent in 2010, ***Tourism figures in 2016 **** permits issued in 2013 and 2017 electoral campaigns March June June Now* 2009 2012 2013 Cost of Living 67.3 43.6 27.1 2 Utility Bills 32.7 31 19.7 0.3 Employment 19.3 11.3 18.3 - Low income 9.3 8.8 15.6 5.7 Corruption 1 2.6 0 10.4 Immigration / foreign workers 27 4.4 2 15.5 Traffic / Roads 0.6 5.6 8.9 25.8 Environment / Construction 1.7 4.2 5.1 15.8 Malta T hirty years after the Brundtland Commission coined the term 'sustainable development', and after decades of indoctrination on the three pillars which uphold it, i.e. society, the economy and the environment; we have frequently omitted the political sphere from this model. In 2018, Malta is undergoing rapid change to all these pillars, and it is high time for us to reflect on what is going on and to prepare for the near future. Politics is just as much of importance to sustainable development as society (including its culture), the economy and the environment. The sustainable development goals, as of 2015, can simply be achieved by applying the political will that they require. One such goal is the eradication of poverty, known as SDG 1. This is an interesting topic as it is surprisingly relevant to Malta. On one side of the story we see a booming economy, with a continuously growing GDP, lower rates of unemployment and more value being generated by the country as reported by the Government of Malta on a daily basis. On the often-neglected side of the story, Eurostat and local studies show a growing gap between the richest and the poorest; the increasing number of homeless people; a rising cost of living and a stagnated minimum wage; soaring rental prices and a shocking 25% of the population in or at risk of poverty. One may wonder what is going on. Isn't a booming economy expected to trickle down into all segments of society? Isn't the standard of living supposed to increase? Statistics show us otherwise, and this is not unexpected in a neoliberal economy such as ours. This is what one may expect in the business as usual scenario that we are expected to subscribe to. Naturally, there are serious issues which we can see and several others which may be hidden to us, and these raise several ethical and moral dilemmas. Unfortunately, this rise in GDP has not reflected itself in a higher standard of living for many people. Malta's citizens continue to experience inescapable traffic; long hours at work and overtime, as well as sporadic urban development taking place at the loss of highly limited open spaces and agricultural land. Consequently, studies prove that this brings along a rise in mental and physical illness (as reported by the World Health Organisation) of which the root causes are often overlooked. So what happens now? Do we want to halt economic development? Are we going to spend whole days working the land to grow our own food? Is it regression that I am advocating? The answer is no. We must be active players in democracy not just during election time, but beyond that. We should be active by giving a voice to the environment, by collectively opposing planning applications which cause more harm than good. We could also lend our time to the most vulnerable parts of society; or be active in an NGO that we feel comfortable with. We need to be prepared for the next stages of development of Malta; to make it more sustainable and to promote equity; phases which may not see such a well-performing economy. Our economic model should reflect the limits to economic growth as laid out by the Club of Rome in 1972; and that infinite economic growth is not possible on a planet with finite resources. Such limits are clear in the case of fossil fuels for which there are two major pitfalls, mainly that they cause irreversible air pollution and climate change, and they are also finite in nature and will soon run out if we do not find alternatives. Going back to the original issue of poverty, I hope that it is clearer now that it can be linked to health; urban development; loss of open spaces; a booming economy and several others. Whether the country will continue pursuing economic growth as its main goal; or choose to plan holistically for the future; lies heavily on political choices. It is high time to see politics as an inseparable sphere of sustainable development, whereby the interplay between society; the economy; the environment and politics are viewed as part of a system; whereby the whole is greater than the sum of all its parts. Under ideal circumstances of a democratic state, we are therefore all responsible for the decision making of a country and the future that awaits it. James Gabarretta is a member of Alternattiva Demokratika Zghazagh Member organisations of the National Youth Council (KNZ) have been invited to submit opinion articles on topics affecting youths today. to its member organisations. The contents of the article do not necessarily refl ect the opinion of the Council. Let's talk about sustainable development James Gabarretta Isn't the standard of living supposed to increase? Statistics show us otherwise, and this is not unexpected in a neoliberal economy such as ours