Author: SME Chamber

The Naxxar Local Council has just published a business
directory titled Biżniss.  This directory
was launched on Wednesday 6 March 2013 at Yorkdale Stationery, one of the main
outlets of Naxxar.  Present for this
launch was Hon. Dr. Beppe Fenech Adami, Parliamentary Assistant at the Office
of the Prime Minister, the Mayor Dr. Maria Deguara, Councillors and
representatives of GRTU.

Through this directory the Council is promoting local
businesses whilst offering a service to its residents by providing them with
information about what is available at Naxxar. 
This directory includes 144 businesses all listed under two different
categories.  There are 113 different
categories prepared in such as way as to make searching for products and
services very straight forward.  Biżniss
includes also a list of all businesses in alphabetical order which is very
similar to what is known as the white pages.

Biżniss also includes a map of the centre of Naxxar
and information of interest to the general public.  This information consists of the history of
Naxxar, services offered by the Local Council, local organisations, useful
contacts such as public entities, voluntary organisations (Caritas etc) and
mass times.  All information is presented
in both Maltese and English languages in full.

This directory is being distributed to all households
at Naxxar and will be available from all local shops as well as from the Local
Council.  Non Naxxar residents may send
an email on to request a free copy.

This is one of many initiatives being taken by the
Naxxar Local Council to offer the best services possible for both residents and
the business community alike. 
Discussions are also presently underway to make Biżniss accessible over
the internet and on smart phones.

The Naxxar Local Council would like to take this
opportunity to thank all local businesses, in particular advertisers, who made
this initiative possible; a successful partnership between the Local  Council and the business community. 

The GRTU Pharmacy division would like to urge the
Pharmacy owners who possess a pharmacy licence that they have to immediately
send in the consent form  being sent to
them by email in order that the payments for the first quarter from POYC be
processed. Anyone who has not yet received a copy of the agreement and who has
not submitted the consent form is to contact Giselle or Liz at GRTU so that
they will be sent a copy of the Agreement that was signed in January. We urge
you to make sure that your form reaches us by the end of next week at the
latest.

A
partnership agreement between local stakeholders to find solutions to reduce
traffic congestion and Co2 emissions caused by freight vehicles has been signed
today at the Tarxien Local Council.

During
the meeting the partners Tarxien Local Council with Mayor Mr. Paul Farrugia and
Councillor Keith Darmanin, Paragon Europe with Mr. Andrea Demadonna (organizer
of the event), Eurofreight Ltd with Mr. Quentin Zahra, Local Wardens with
Authorised Officer Mr John Bonavia and GRTU with Ms. Carmen Borg stressed the
importance of bringing all stakeholders together to find ways of reducing the
impact on the environment that freight transport causes, whilst maintaining the
competitiveness of the sector in the industry. Tarxien mayor Chev Paul Farrugia
spoke about the initiatives such as a public forum and the involvement of the
Neighbourhood watch group to create public awareness and also involve the
citizens in the decision-making process.

The
Freight Quality Partnership is one of the key measures planned by the C-Liege,
an Intelligent Energy Europe Project partly co-financed by EACI and aimed at
empowering a cooperative approach between public and private stakeholders that
is targeted on the reduction of energetic and environmental impacts of freight
transport in European cities and regions. In order to reach this objective,
C-LIEGE will promote cleaner and energy efficient freight movements in urban
areas.

The
Freight Quality Partnership will consist of a permanent forum that will be
meeting every 3-4 months to discuss Freight Transport issues and will set a
strategy towards a better management of Freight Transport within the locality
of Tarxien through green  measures that
have successfully been introduced and implemented at EU level. The forum hopes
to convene in April for its first official discussion.

The
Freight Quality Partnership in Tarxien aims at offering key stakeholders the
possibility to meet and come up with concrete proposals and also disseminate
good practice such as loading and uploading bays in front of shops which are
present in some areas.  The forum will
represent the first of this kind in Malta and hopefully will attract the
interest of other Maltese localities.

Besides
the LFDP, the FQP will discuss other measures based on the C-Liege list of best
practices already in place in several EU cities.

Arrogance is at the heart of the Valletta Local
Council's decision not to renew its agreement with Green MT for the collection
of recyclables within Valletta following March 01, 2013. It is pertinent to note that Valletta Local Council
issued the below three tenders in October 2012 related to Waste Managment for
its locality:

The collection of mixed waste from Households Street
Sweeping within Valletta Local Council Tender VLC SSCRA/3/12 Cleaning of the
Commercial Centre in Valletta Tender VLC CCC/2/12 After the closing date of the
tenders. Valletta Local Council awarded all three tenders to Waste Collection
Limited.

This decision however aggrieved two GRTU members, who
placed an appeal with the Public Contracts Review Board. These tenders are
financed by public funds.

To date two of these appeals which were lodged by a
GRTU member have been heardand Valletta Local Council lost both these appeals.
During the appeal process the individual was assisted by GRTU ‘s Joe Attard who
also happens to be the CEO of Green MT and by a leading lawyer, Dr George
Cutajar. For all intents and purposes another tender, the collection of mixed
waste from households, also recommended for award to Waste Collection Limited
has been appealed by another GRTU member. The appeal is still pending at the time
of writing.

GRTU Malta Chamber of Small and Medium Enterprises on
behalf of its member duly referred the case also to the Director of Local
Councils stating that our member appealed both tender awards and in terms of
Regulation 84(2) of the Public Procurement Regulations 2010 (LN296 of 2010),
the Review Board has issued its decision in both cases. (Cases

510 and 511).

In both cases the Board recommended that the tenders
be cancelled and that another call be issued. The Board further recommended
that the deposit paid by the appellant for the appeal to be lodged should be
reimbursed. The issue now lies in the fact that the recommended tenderer, Waste
Collection Limited is actually doing the stated scope of works at the Valletta
Local Council. As such GRTU has now requested the Department of Local
Government to issue a time frame by which these tenders should be re issued,
without any further delay and based on the parameters when they were actually
issued.

Of course there were those at the Local Council who thought
that they were above board, who thought that they could trample over one and
all and make sure that the tenders were awarded to whoever they wanted. But of
course the Public Contracts Review Board provided a bollocking to the said
Local Council, even though the Mayor came up with the absurd excuse that these
tenders needed to be awarded with urgency, at the hearing.

Since the appeal was lodged by a GRTU member and
because Green MT CEO, together with the very able lawyer, aptly and diligently
defended his member at the hearing of the Review Board, the Local Council
decided that it is time for payback and therefore did not renew Green MT's
current agreement for recyclable collections within the locality.

We are not afraid of such actions. Such actions only
strengthen us in our belief that right is right and that we were correct in
ensuring that our aggrieved member was duly right in his appeal. The days of
the jungle are long past and part of history. Despite Valletta Local Council's
payback strategy to use another Scheme as from 1st March 2013, we will continue
to do what is duly right at law. Arrogance does not deter us from doing what is
morally and legally correct.

To add insult to injury Green MT was only informed by
this decision through the media. This is the way cowards act ! The
administrative staff at the Local Council was duty bound to inform the Scheme
of the decision taken by the Local Council. But why should the Executive
Secretary even consider putting pen to paper or communicate such a decision
taken by the Local Council?

This is the real reason why Valletta Local Council did
not renew its current agreement with Green MT. Green MT is still Malta's
leading Waste Packaging Compliance Scheme. A Scheme is not measured by how many
Local Councils it manages to take over, and saying this, both Schemes currently
have 34 Local Councils each, but by the amount of packaging waste their
producer members place on the market, and by the amount of tons each Scheme is
able to recover. In this case reports issued by both Schemes clearly show that
Green MT is by far the largest, both in market placement and also in actual
recovery from both Local Councils and other sources.

These reports can be seen and bought from MEPA. They
are public documents. They are issued by the same Schemes. Nothing can change
the real facts. Facts are what they are.

GRTU represents a wide cross section of businesses
operating in Sliema and though we are interested in the provision of parking
slots for business owners and their employees, our primary aim is to ensure
that there are sufficient parking slots available for the largest possible
number of consumers that wish to be serviced by the commercial and servicing
business community that has invested in Sliema.

Without the patronage of a vast and expanding
clientele the businesses cannot sustain a decent level of profitability that
keeps them efficient and well stocked, provides for a larger volume of
employment and help this important commercial sector compete with other centres
in other parts of the Island and other shopping facilities not so far from the
Sliema shopping quarter where parking is more easily available.

Our discussions included meetings with The Local
Council, Malta Transport, the Ministry for Resources and Rural Affairs (MRRA),
the Ministry for Transport (MITC), the Ministry for Tourism, and the Ministry
responsible for Local Government, Wardens and the Police.

Numerous consultation meetings were held with our
members and other associations representing other stakeholders.

Discussions with the Local Council and all the Sliema
Mayors have been going on for a long time. We do our best to understand the
tremendous task faced by the Local Council to address the conflicting demands
made by the various road network stakeholders. We also discuss with private
investors and support private projects that aim at increasing private parking
facilities. In this context we also hold discussions with MEPA and invite MEPA
officials to meet and discuss options with our members.

Together with the Local Council we have also been
lobbying with the Ministry for Resources to invest more funds to provide
additional parking facilities and new investments as indeed already has taken
place along the promenade and elsewhere.

Our aim is to encourage new capital investment on a
planned medium to long term period and in the short run to encourage better and
more efficient and accessible public transport service and optimum turnover of
the parking slots volume that currently exists. We recognise the plight of
residents and we do our utmost to reach compromises as the local resident
community are also essential to sustain the businesses we represent but we
strive to convince residents that the businesses in the community are an essential
part of what makes Sliema so special and what keeps the value of property in
Sliema on the upper scale and compromises by what resident's and businesses
need is the best way forward.

GRTU believes in practical compromises and not in
action and conflict.

Compromises require sacrifices by all to achieve
results that are satisfying for all stakeholders. The current plans are not
perfect and it is definitely transitional and we will continue to discuss to
achieve further fine tuning but the basic concepts are right. Change had lately
become a popular theme but too many people say yes to change but not in my
….. Parking bay!

GRTU Director General and EESC
Employers Representative has this week objected to an EESC draft Opinion which
aims at giving the wrong message on the status of being self-employed. Mr
Farrugia objected during the EESC Section for Single Market, Production and
Consumption (INT) on the draft opinion entitled 'Abuse of the status of
self-employed'. He emphasised that the paper raised serious concern.

Mr Farrugia warned that the draft report
does not respect the subsidiarity principle and that the rapporteur insists on
proposing initiatives that go beyond the scope of action of the EU. Should the
draft opinion be adopted as it stands, the EESC would make recommendations
contradicting the subsidiarity principle.

Mr Farrugia stated that the EU
expressly excludes any harmonisation of the laws and regulations of the Member
States as regards social policy and employment issues. Commissioner Andor,
following a question of the EU Parliament requesting the Commission action to
tackle bogus self-employment, replied in October 2012 that the national
authorities, including the courts, are responsible for laying down and
enforcing the criteria for determining the status of an employed person and can
prevent and sanction abuses more effectively at their level. In a previous
Opinion in 2010 the EESC itself stated that no discussion on this issue can
ignore the diversity ofnational regulations and practices: under European
social legislation, the definition of worker and entrepreneur is established at
national level.

Vince Farrugia recommend that the
current draft proposal be amended to respect the principle of subsidiarity and
become in line with previous positions of the European Commission on this
issue, particularly as regards to the draft opinion's definition of sham
self-employment and how this would help bona fide self-employed and micro
businesses.

The draft opinion states that 'There
is currently no unambiguous, EU-wide definition making a clear distinction
between bona fide self-employed people and sham-self-employed. The absence of
such a clear distinction is one of the causes of abuse of the self-employed
status'.

Mr Farrugia argued that the absence
of a definition cannot be regarded as the cause of the abuse. Furthermore, the
flexibility of the various definitions offer national authorities and courts an
efficient tool to adopt the most appropriate decisions in a prompt and most up
to date manner.

In the draft opinion the rapporteur
also proposes to take into account the 'financial dependence on only one
client' to apply to the definition of employment relationship. Such a proposal
lacks sense and would lead to ludicrous situations. The rapporteur's proposal
would result in defining as 'employee', for instance, any start-up
entrepreneur, or any architect or lawyer with one big client. It is obvious
that, in a market economy, an entrepreneur would have a higher risk if his/her
business is based on one client only. This does not mean, however, that such
entrepreneur should become de facto an employee.

In addition to this GRTU's DG also
said that the EESC cannot support a "one-size-fits all" solution. As
the rapporteur correctly points out the social contribution regimes and the tax
laws for self-employed workers differ across the EU. The design of national
social security, labour protection and taxation laws has a great influence on
the national definitions of a self-employed worker as well as the definition of
dependent work. In Denmark, for instance, it is easy to establish an employment
contract but the Danish authorities grant significant support for dismissed
workers. In Germany, for example, the labour laws grant high protection for
employed workers but the support for the unemployed is rather low.

This diverse situation results from
the current legal framework provided by the EU Treaties, making the main
proposals put forward by the rapporteur impossible to put in practice. Further
to the legal impossibility provided by the EU Treaties, it is recognized across
the EU that there is not a single model of employment, tax and social
legislation that can be generalized across the EU. Each country is best placed
to understand their own particularities and decide on its own on the best laws
according to its national situation.

Mr Farrugia described the draft
opinion as regretfully misleading and too often lacks precision on too many
fronts, and therefore called for the draft opinion to be amended. Most of the
draft opinion either does not bring an added-value to the pursued objective of
tackling the abuse of bogus self-employment or it simply cannot be implemented
due to the lack of competence of the EU on the issue. Mr Farrugia went on to
propose a list of alternative measures that could be discussed and proposed for
action to the European Commission.

Commission investigation into alleged
dumping of solar glass comes three months after start of a bigger case against
Chinese makers of solar panels. The European Commission launched a
second investigation into allegations that Chinese producers in the
solar-energy sector are dumping their products on the European market.  

In November, the Commission said it
was investigating whether Chinese producers of solar panels – which comprise
cells, wafers and modules – have been selling their products on the European
market at below their market value. The investigation announced today is into
prices charged for one component of solar panels – solar glass used in solar
modules – and the size of the European market is substantially smaller, at €150
million-€200m rather than €21 billion in the case of solar panels. The Commission,
which is obliged to take up dumping complaints with corroborating evidence, now
has 15 months – until late May next year – to complete its investigation. After
nine months, it could decide whether to impose temporary duties on Chinese
solar glass. Once the investigation is complete, it could apply duties for five
years.  

The group of European producers that
brought the complaint – ProSun Glass – says that some Chinese solar glass is
being sold in Europe at half its market value.  

The Commission has not decided yet
how it will gauge what the fair market value is. In the case of solar panels,
the reference – or ‘analogue' – market was the United States and the prices
charged by its producers. For solar glass, the prices charged by Turkish or Taiwanese
producers may serve as the reference.  

The group that brought the complaint
against Chinese solar-panel producers, ProSun, says that its membership and
operations are distinct from those of the group that lodged the complaint taken
up today by the Commission, ProSun Glass.  

The Commission says that the two
cases are being handled by two separate teams and that the two markets are
distinct, in part because solar glass can also be used in products other than
solar panels.  

Both investigative teams would,
however, have to consider the impact on the broader solar-energy market in
Europe, as investigators are obliged to consider the ‘community interest' – the
potential impact of duties on other markets and policy area.  

ProSun's decision to bring a
complaint to the Commission has split the solar industry in Europe, with many
companies arguing that imposing duties would shrink the market, potentially
costing hundreds of thousands of jobs. 

The effect, they argue, would be to
make the solar industry less competitive at a point when the industry, whose
birth was eased with large subsidies, is capable of producing energy at prices
that are competitive with those charged for traditional sources of energy.

The EU's long-term budget (also known
as Multi-Annual Financial Framework – MFF), agreed by the European Council on 8
February 2013 translates the EU priorities into financial terms. The deal
foresees a possible expenditure capped at €960 billion for 2014-2020.

The European Commission's original
proposal, presented in June 2011 (€1025 billion) would have represented an
increase of around 3% over the current financial envelope. The Commission's
proposal aimed at a budget designed to drive the Europe 2020 strategy towards
smart, sustainable and inclusive growth. The Commission's proposal is
innovative in terms of the quality of its spending proposals and also in terms
of easing the direct impact of funding on national budgets. It also seeks to
support the structured approach set out in the European Semester of economic
policy coordination.

The main new elements in the MFF
include:

A
Common Strategic Framework for research, innovation and technological development:
in addressing the EU's innovation gap, the Commission proposed future funding
be based on areas that are firmly anchored in the Europe 2020 strategy. A
common strategic framework (Horizon 2020) will eliminate fragmentation and
ensure more coherence

Sustainable
growth and employment: Cohesion policy is key to the achievement of the Europe
2020 objectives and targets.

Connecting
Europe Facility: funding of pre-identified transport, energy and ICT priority
infrastructural projects of EU interest, hereby further unlocking the Single
Market's potential by equipping it with the infrastructure to accelerate
development across borders

A
resource-efficient Common Agricultural Policy: the Commission's proposal makes
the Common Agricultural Policy more resource efficient, so that it not only
delivers food security but also helps to manage the environment and fight
climate change.

Investing
in human capital: the Commission's proposal rationalises and simplifies the
current programmes and instruments by proposing a single, integrated programme
on education, training and youth. The focus is on developing the skills and
mobility of human capital.

Although the levels agreed by the
European Council are below what the Commission considers desirable given the
challenge of promoting growth and jobs across the EU in the coming years, the
agreement can still be an important catalyst for growth and jobs. In
particular, the deal preserves the basic structure of the Commission's proposal
and some innovative instruments. Investment in some areas such as research and
innovation, 'Erasmus For All', and new programmes for SMEs, will be
significantly higher. An agreement on a new and very important Youth Employment
Initiative – a powerful signal of solidarity and added value at European level
– has been secured.

The Lisbon Treaty provides that the
adoption of the

MFF requires the consent of the
European Parliament.

Economic activity was disappointing
in the second half of 2012, but leading indicators suggest that GDP in the EU
is now bottoming out, and economic activity is expected to gradually
accelerate. According to the EU winter forecast issued on 22 February, the
pick-up in growth will initially be driven by increasing external demand, with
domestic investment and consumption projected to recover later in the year and
become the main drivers of GDP growth by 2014.