Author: SME Chamber

The Malta Council for Science and Technology (MCST) has been working on the development of an updated Research and Innovation (R&I) Strategy 2020 following the publication of a first draft and numerous consultations with public and private stakeholders.  The Council is now launching the updated draft R&I Strategy 2020 for public consultation. This updated draft includes thematic areas identified through the smart specialisation process undertaken over the past months. The feedback received will be used to update and finalise the document. A separate action plan for the strategy’s implementation is currently under preparation. The draft R&I Strategy 2020 can be accessed through the ‘News’ section of the MCST website (www.mcst.gov.mt).

You are kindly invited to submit your feedback to by October 9th 2013.

Please refer any queries you may have to or by phone to 2360 2121 or 2360 2125.

 

 

GRTU would like to inform you that a survey for the evaluation of the Energy Labelling Directive and some aspects of the Ecodesign Directive is now online and will run till 30th November 2013.

Please note that two versions of the survey are available:

 

1. A simplified version tailored at consumers and small- and- medium enterprises including multiple choice questions only.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2. A full version targeted at all other stakeholders including the possibility to also provide free text answers.

The survey can be accessed on the below link: http://ec.europa.eu/energy/efficiency/consultations/201310_evaluation_of_energy_labelling_directive__en.htm

http://ec.europa.eu/energy/efficiency/consultations/201310_evaluation_of_energy_labelling_directive__en.htm

As of 16^th September 2013, Green MT in collaboration with Smart Recycling Limited will introduce an immediate financial benefit for your packaging material. So the more you collect, the more the financial rebate will be. From now on, your company will be paid on delivery, there and then!

Payments for materials will be made as follows:

 

Euro 40 incl. Vat per ton for    Cardboard                                                 Euro 50 incl. Vat per ton for    Plastic PET

 

Euro 50 incl. Vat per ton for    Plastic Shrink                                             Euro 50 incl. Vat per ton for     Plastic PC

The following conditions are:      

Delivery is to be made by the company directly to the facility Smart Recycling Limited, 30, N/S in Valletta Road, Luqa by a vehicle which is registered under Legal Notice 106 of 2007. (opening hours 7.30am-4.30pm)

– Each material has to be separated.               

Upon delivery, the material will be weighed and a chit is given to the driver for data purposes if needed for your records. Apart from that the payment as agreed per ton above, will be paid instantly and also pro rata if the amount is less than one ton.

For further queries do not hesitate to call us on 99246925 Green MT or Smart Recycling Limited 99452458.

Green MT Ltd

Il-GRTU tifraħ lill-Prim Ministru, lill-Ministru Konrad Mizzi u d-delegazzjoni li jinsabu ċ-Ċina ghall-akkwist li għamlu f’isem Malta fejn issalvagwardjaw l-intenzjoni taċ-Ċina li tinvesti b’mod sostanzjali fil-qasam tal-enerġija f'Malta. Dan jinkludi, investiment dirett fl-Enemalta u l-possibiltà li titwaqqaf kumpanija li tgħaqqad il-panelli solari Ċinizi għall-Ewropa f'Malta u li Malta tintuża bħala ċentru minn fejn iċ-Ċina tagħti servizzi lill-power stations li għandha fil-Mediterran.

 

Dan hu pass pożittiv hafna fil-fehma tal-GRTU. Il-GRTU tirrikonoxxi liċ-Ċina bhala suq importanti hafna għal Malta u l-GRTU mhux biss tinkoraġġixxi izda wkoll tappoġġja lill-intraprizi Maltin li jahdmu ma’ kumpaniji Ċinizi. Dan għaliex iċ-Ċina toffri hafna opportunitajiet ta` tkabbir għan-negozji Maltin. Il-GRTU fil-fatt riċentement anke assistit grupp ta` imprendituri Maltin biex jippromwovu l-prodotti tagħhom fiċ-Ċina, bl-assistenza tal-Malta Enterprise.

L-investiment li ser isir għandu jwassal għal tnaqqis fil-piż li jirrapreżenta d-dejn ta` l-Enemalta li fl-aħħar mill-aħħar qed jitħallas ukoll mit-taxxi li jhallas kull wieħed minnha.

Rigward il-punti ta` l-enerġija rinovabbli l-GRTU ilha tirsisti ghal possibilita ta’ assemblagg ta’ panelli fotovoltajici f’Malta, u qeda wkoll f’diskussjonijiet mal-ministeru sabiex dan is-settur jinghata spinta il-quddiem. Għalekk tappoġġja kull investiment li jista` jiġi f’dan ir-rigward.

L-investiment għandu jwassal ukoll għal ħolqien ta` postijiet ġodda ta` xogħol. Il-GRTU għalhekk tappella lill-Gvern biex jinvesti aktar fir-riżorsi umani tagħna fejn jidħlu ħiliet tal-ħaddiema tagħna relatati ma’ xogħolijiet fis-settur tal-enerġija effiċjenti sabiex meta ikun hawn opportunitajiet bħal dawn nutilizzaw il-ħaddiema ikkwalifikati tagħna.

GRTU welcomes L.N. 244/2013 launched in August 2013 with the  amendments to the Animal Welfare Act- Protection of Animals offered in Pet Shops in Malta and Gozo.

GRTU is totally in favour of increased animal protection and condemns without reservation abuse, neglect and cruelty on any species. GRTU however felt the need to intervene after various meetings with its members as certain aspects of the law would have heavily burdened pet shop owners making certain aspects of their business unsustainable.

 

– GRTU, Malta Chamber of SMEs, representing pet shops has led the authorities to accept  amendments to the law without essentially reducing the level of increased animal protection for which was the aim of this law in the first place.

 

– GRTU welcomes the new law as it will indeed mean an increase in the level of protection of animals and as the Authorities themselves confirmed most of the pet shops will only need to make minor amendments to facilitate inspection.

 

– GRTU also welcomes this law as it will put anyone selling an animal, be it from a pet shop, a private residence and a website in a position of breach of law should they go against any part of it.

 

– This law also establish a level playing field which till now was very lacking as pet shops were regularly inspected while other individuals selling animals were most of the time ignored.

The most important change this law will bring about relates to record keeping. GRTU proposed and  its proposal was accepted to limit record keeping to the species which need it most as some species enter and exit the pet shop too frequently to keep records of. Record keeping is important as it can shed light on repetitive problems within an establishment and provide a tracking system, should a problem with a particular species arise.

Purchasing records (the invoice) would be kept but when it comes to sale records they would be kept only for cats, dogs, ferrets, horses, poultry and all other animals included in the Registration of Exotic Animals Regulations, 2010. This diminished the bureaucratic burden significantly and maintains record keeping where it is most needed.

Another bureaucratic and costly burden that was alleviated was the requirement of having a VET verify all the mortalities. This now will be done only for mortalities in access of 10% of individual species. Had this requirement been maintained the veterinary inspection would cost much more than most of the animals themselves, jeopradising the sustainability of pet shops.

Another heavy requirement in the law was the long acclimatization period for all animal species when entering the pet shop. These were considered too long and might have involved the pet shop needing a significant amount of extra space for quarantine. This is now reduced to 2 days for birds and others, 12hrs for fish and 0hrs for chickens. A proposal accepted was to exclude hand reared parrots from the requirement of not selling animals that are not weaned this because there is a specific niche market that requires these birds before being weaned due to the bonding of the bird with its owner. Also accepted was the change of wording that was proposed which leads to less stringent cleaning impositions which are now more related to need. Similarly the working was arranged to replacing of food when needed which means that dry food can be kept for longer periods than soft food.

The GRTU together with the relevant institutions will be working on establishing the relevant qualification requirements and ensuring that pet shops having years of experience are treated and assessed on their experience and given the necessary recognition. The GRTU also emphasized that the  approach should be one to guide and teach. The authorities confirmed that inspectors were being coached into this attitude. In the meantime any complaints in this regard should be addressed to the Authority for immediate action.

Work is still ongoing however, GRTU, would like to thank its members for their support, the authorities especially Dr Anthony Gruppetta for the excellent consultation and openness to understand the different situations and requirements of the sector.

 

GRTU has this week teamed up with the European Commission Representation in Malta, the Central Bank of Malta and the Malta Bankers Association and held a concise and easy to understand information campaign about the Single Euro Payments Area and how businesses should prepare for it.

 

The meeting was very successful with a high level of participation and very positive response from participants. During the meeting we explained that the aims of SEPA are very positive for businesses. It aims to establish a modern and comprehensive set of rules applicable to all payment services in the EU. It targets to make cross-border payments as easy, efficient and secure as ‘national’ payments within a member state. SEPA should improve competition by opening up payment markets to new entrants, thus fostering greater efficiency and cost reduction, these are big plusses for business.

All retail payments in euro will become domestic eliminating any differentiation between national and cross border payments. One home account will become sufficient for all domestic and cross-border euro-denominated payments throughout SEPA. This is important as currently when dealing with companies in other Member States they request that you open an account in their Member State as well.

Consumers also enjoy fast, secure and streamlined SEPA services – a SEPA payment is credited to the beneficiary’s account at the latest one day after execution date.

Payment management processes will become simplified, facilitating easier reconciliation and bank account management. Savings will be made on costs and time as payment and liquidity management will be consolidated in one location.  In addition there will be greater transparency in the pricing structure and comparable costs of payment services between banks across EU. Something we are particularly pleased with as GRTU.

The deadline by which everyone has to be SEPA complaint is 1st February 2014. The following changes will come into affect:

 

– For Direct Debits new mandate formats will need to be used and new debtor rights are stipulated by SEPA (no questions asked right for refund)

 

– Domestic account number format (BBAN) will be replaced by International Bank Account Number (IBAN).  The BIC (swift code) will need to accompany the IBAN until 1st February 2016)

 

– For companies using SEPA Direct Debits there will be the introduction of a new Creditor Identifier and this needs to be accompanied by a Unique Mandate Reference.

Companies that use cheques or internet banking to make individual payments have limited changes to make. However companies using bundled data for making  payments or accepting direct debits need to perform more preparations and they should therefore act urgently.

The meeting conclusions were that the deadline for SEPA migration is fast approaching, February 2014, just 5 months away, so work has to start now. Businesses should start placing their IBANs and BICs on their invoices and they were advised not to leave preparations to the end for testing purposes and to speak to their banks and software providers that will assist them throughout the whole process.

 

GRTU Malta Chamber of Small and Medium enterprises, yesterday welcomed Hon Leo Brincat, Minister for Sustainable Development, Environment and Climate Change. The Minister was accompanied by his Chief of Staff Louis Borg.

 

 

 

GRTU President Paul Abela welcomed the Minister and augured that relations between his Ministry and the GRTU from a number of different aspects should grow from day to day in a spirit of goodwill. Mr Abela thanked the Minister for taking interest in the many sectors that GRTU was involved with but mainly, waste management, renewable energy issues and also climate change issues, this in relation to his Ministry.

From his side the Minister thanked the GRTU for the invitation and outlined that the meeting was held now because some issues to be discussed needed various commissioned reports to be finished, mainly in relation to Wasteserv.

The Minister informed GRTU that he wanted to ascertain one and all that with respect to the family park at Marsa scala, decisions were taken based on technical reports, no more no less. He further informed GRTU that the Marsascala Park would reopen in a matter of days.

The meeting touched on various subjects, amongst which the following:

 

– The Family Park

 

– WasteServ, its operations and the eventual inclusion of private industry in some of its operations.

 

– The segregation process currently under way

 

– Planning and the Environment

 

– The logistics of waste collection from Local Councils and the operations of Waste Carriers within the same frame. Review of current tender documentation.

 

– The introduction of  a system where the commercial community shouldered responsability for its waste generation

 

– The future of Eco Contribution and Legal Notice 84 of 2010.

 

– The future of WEEE, Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive

 

The Minister also outlined that he would like GRTU to provide briefs in relation to Wasteserv operations and how changes can be effected to improve its operations, and also other briefs in relation to Eco Contribution and the segregation of MEPA and planning.

The Minister further outlined that in a few weeks time the Ministry would be issuing a Waste Management plan for the years 2013 to 2020. He outlined that GRTU would be welcome to provide comments and feedback during the consultation period and also meet so that a holistic solution is found in respect to Waste  Management.

Mr Joe Attard, Green Mt CEO emphasized the fact that currently there are still a lot of producers who evade paying up for their packaging Waste obligations and that enforcement from MEPA’s end leaves much to be desired. In addition draft regulations relating to consumer packaging placed on the market, have as yet not been implemented to the detriment of Schemes.

Joe Attard also outlined to the Minister that in relation to WEEE, the country had to be very careful of the way it is implemented. Of course an exemption from Eco tax was required from Day 1, but even this alone would not suffice to get the ball rolling. This is due to the fact that parameters of targets at EU levels have now been changed and as thus the onus of recovery and final recycling is much greater then the amount anticipated

Mr Leo Brincat outlined that Government is committed towards better recycling results, and also wants the waste management sector to operate in the most transparent way ever. He thanked GRTU for the meeting and looked forward to further structured meetings with his Ministry.

Present for the meeting were also Marcella Aguis from Green Mt and Mr Steve Farrugia, representing the Waste Carriers, members of GRTU.

 

 

 

On the 9th of September 2013, Mr. Vince Farrugia, intimated his desire to retire from the post of Director General of the GRTU. Whilst regretfully, acceding to Mr. Farrugia's wishes, the GRTU Executive Council unanimously, in the name of its membership, thanked Mr. Farrugia for his 20 years of service to the business community in Malta and Gozo.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mr. Farrugia will remain as advisor to the Executive Council and GRTU will be appointing a new Director General in due course.  Mr. Farrugia will of course continue to represent Maltese employers in the EESC (European Economic & Social Committee) of the European Union.

EU27 current account surplus 35.9 bn – The EU27 external
current account recorded a surplus of 35.9 billion euro (1.1% of GDP)
in the second quarter of 2013, compared with a surplus of 5.9 bn (0.2% of
GDP) in the second quarter of 2012, according to first
estimates from Eurostat, the statistical office of the European
Union.

In the second
quarter of 2013, compared with the second quarter of 2012, the deficit of the
goods account turned into a surplus (+19.9 bn euro compared with -10.6 bn),
while the surplus of the services account slightly fell (+36.5 bn compared with
+39.9 bn). The deficit of the income account dropped (-5.7 bn compared with
-9.1 bn), while the deficit of the current transfers account remained nearly
stable (-14.7 bn compared with -14.3 bn).