Category: Archive – 2014

A Mission for
Growth, led by the Vice-President of the European Commission responsible for
Industry and Entrepreneurship, will be organised in Wallonia, Belgium, on
February 18 and 19, 2014.

The
Mission aims at connecting Walloon SMEs to European companies active in the
same or complementary sectors by participating in networking and B2B
events.   Additionally to the B2B, in
order to allow foreign companies and associated EEN partners to discover
Wallonia activities in the targeted sectors, dedicated thematic visits will
also be organised.

This
Mission targets the following industry sectors, corresponding to the main
clusters in Wallonia:

For registration and further info, visit:

http://www.enterprise-europemalta.com

The Building
Industry Consultative Council (BICC) together with the Malta Competition and
Consumer Affairs Authority (MCCAA) will be organizing a seminar for all the
Architects, Engineers, contractors and professionals within the construction
industry for the official of the Euro Codes in Maltaa. Since this seminar is
free of charge all these professionals and building contractors are invited to
attend to this event.

A
foreign guest speaker Professor David. A. Nethercot is the main speaker.
Professor David A. Nethercot is a British expert in the Euro Codes. Other
speakers are the Engineer Francis Farrugia from the MCCAA, Professor Alex
Torpiano from the University of Malta, the Hon. Architect Charles Buhagiar M.P
Chairman and C.E.O of the BICC and the Hon. Minister for Social Dialogue,
Consumer Affairs and Civil Liberties Dr. Helena Dalli.

This
event is being held on Friday 31st January at the Aula Magna, Old University in
Valletta from 5.30pm onwards. It is important that those who intend to attend
should register on 2292 7933/4 at the earliest as reservations are limited.

The
pan-European job search network EURES would be strengthened to provide more job
offers, increase the likelihood of job matches and help employers, notably
small and medium businesses, to fill job vacancies faster and better, under a
proposal just presented by the European Commission.

The proposal would help
citizens to make the most informed choice possible when it comes to moving
abroad for work. "The Commission's proposal represents an ambitious step
to fight unemployment in a very practical way. It would help to address
imbalances on labour markets by maximising the exchange of available job
vacancies throughout the EU and ensuring a more accurate match between job
vacancies and job seekers. The reformed EURES would facilitate labour mobility
and contribute to achieving a truly integrated EU labour market",
Commissioner for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion, László Andor,
highlighted.

The
EURES job search network can be found at: https://ec.europa.eu/eures/

The submission
deadline for the 3rd edition of the "Sustainable Entrepreneurship Award" (SEA),
an international prize for companies applying sustainability criteria in their
entrepreneurial activities, has been set for 30th April.

The award consists of
two categories – Best Project and Best Idea – and goes out to companies and
individuals whose business model strives towards improving social, economical
and ecological issues in their global, regional or micro-local surroundings.
Projects can be submitted from around the world, national as well as
international companies from any sector and of any size are eligible to
participate. Winners, to be announced on 7th October, will receive a 10.000 EUR
reward to be invested in their current work or in a follow-up project.

Further information can be
found at: http://se-award.org/en

Participants will also have the opportunity to
participate in a brokerage session, whereby the representatives from Managing
Authorities and National Contact Points will be present in an adjacent room to
answer queries on a one-to-one basis. 

The
first EXPLORE session will promote EU funding programmes related to the culture
and the arts sector for non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and businesses
active in the sector, as well as local councils that are interested in
implementing ‘artistic' initiatives in their localities.

The EU
Funding Programmes that will feature in this session are:

Erasmus+

Creative Europe – Culture Sub-Programme

Creative Europe – Media Sub-Programme

A talk
about other national funds namely: the Malta Arts Fund, Malta Film Fund, Video
Games Fund and Kreattiv will also be delivered during the information session.
Personnel from the Malta Arts Scholarship and Valletta 2018 Foundation will
also be present for the brokerage session.

Should
you be interested in taking part, kindly fill in the form below and
reply on by not later than Tuesday, January 28,
2014.

The Europa
series €5 started circulating in the euro area on 2 May 2013. On 13 January
2014 Yves Mersch, member of the ECB's Executive Board, unveiled the second
banknote of this series, the €10, at a press conference in Frankfurt am Main.

The security features of this banknote were made public several weeks earlier
in a game that is still online. The new €10 will start circulating on 23
September 2014. The other banknotes in the series will be introduced gradually
over several years, in ascending order. The denominations remain unchanged: €5,
€10, €20, €50, €100, €200 and €500.

The ECB
and the national central banks of the Eurosystem are conducting an information
campaign about the Europa series, which includes a dedicated website. The
campaign aims to help the public recognise the new notes and their security
features. In April 2013, the Eurosystem sent information materials on the new
series and specifically on the €5 to professional cash handlers working in over
3 million shops and banks in the euro area. It will be doing the same for the
new €10 in 2014.

In
addition, the information campaign on the new €10 will include a Eurosystem
Partnership Programme to help banknote equipment manufacturers (BEMs) and
suppliers on the one hand, and their clients and users on the other, to prepare
for the introduction of the new banknotes. There are many advantages in
becoming a partner ahead of the issuance of the new €10.

Lists
are available on the ECB's website of banknote authentication devices and
handling machines which have been tested by the Eurosystem central banks and
been adapted to recognise the new €5 banknotes. Similar lists for the new €10
banknotes will be published in 2014 after the machines and devices have
undergone the same testing. Of course, the new €5 and €10 can also be easily
checked using the simple "FEEL, LOOK and TILT" method, as with the
first series of euro banknotes.

Details of the
list can be found at: http://www.ecb.europa.eu/euro/cashprof/cashhand/devices/html/results.en.html

Green MT, is a
National Waste Packaging Compliance Scheme authorised by the Malta Environment
and Planning Authority. Its aim is to provide legal compliance to its producers
with the best technology at the lowest of cost.

The legal
obligation of an importer in relation to the above legislation lies with Legal
Notice 277 of 2006. Every importer or local manufacturer who places packaging
waste on the market, the market being Malta or Gozo, is obliged to comply to
the above legislation. There are two ways as to how an importer or a
manufacturer placing packaging waste in the Maltese waste stream can comply,
either by joining an Authorised Scheme or by Self Compliance.

If an importer
joins a Scheme it will be the Scheme that will have the obligation to comply on
his behalf in respect to the legislation. This is done against a related
payment to the Scheme. Should the producer opt for self compliance he is duty
bound to cover his obligation by collecting 60% of his own packaging, using an
authorised handler who complies to Legal Notice 106 of 2007, who in turn
delivers the material to an authorised waste management facility, who then
issues certification of receipt and eventually a final certificate that the
material has been sent to an authorised recycling facility abroad. Self
Compliant members also need an attestation from their auditors that shows a
full audit trail of this procedure.

In Malta, in 2010
there were 766 producers who claimed that they were self complaint. These
producers placed over 15,700 tons of packaging waste on the market.
Collectively these 766 recovered 566 tons of packaging waste from the market,
when their legal obligation was 7850 tons. Less then 8% of producers complied.

In 2011, MEPA
advised that there were now 559 producers who were still declaring self
compliance. The weight of market placement of these producers was not available
as at 7th March 2013.

In 2012, the
National Waste Register shows that the amount of self compliant producers has
decreased to 159 producers. This means either of both of the following
scenarios. Either both existing Authorised Schemes increased their membership
base by 400 or else 400 ‘self declared, self compliant producers' did not renew
their annual registration with MEPA. From the Annual Reports issued by both
Authorised Schemes to MEPA there was nowhere near an increase of 400 member
producers. In fact there were a sizeable number of deregistrations, meaning a
number of producers who instead of renewing informed MEPA that they no longer
place packaging waste on the market. These amounted to around 260.

So the
situation is that these 400 have become free riders on the system, meaning that
whilst those known to MEPA are either Scheme members and paying a Scheme
financially, these 400 are known to MEPA or were known to MEPA and have been
allowed an easy escape channel out of compliance to this legislation.

Importers and
local manufacturers placing packaging waste on the market are reminded that
compliance to the Packaging and Packaging Waste Legislation remains a must.
MEPA had issued a stern warning way back in 2011 stating that every producer is
liable to administrative and other legal proceedings unless the producer
complies. This means that escaping from the system and not paying now to any
Scheme, and not self complying does not mean that an importer or producer can
take it for granted that all is well. The producer continues to shoulder the compliance
liability and MEPA can one day take the related action and they would be made
to face the liabilities.

We say this
with the full responsibility that we are not in favor of any type of
environmental lack of compliance. There needs to be a fair and level playing
field for all producers, as it highly unfair that a number of producers pay the
Schemes or self comply, (although self compliance is only done in reality by an
honest few), whilst other make sure they do nothing about their legal
obligation and in turn continue to destabilize a number of sectors?

A tangible
example, why should importer A who is a Scheme paying member, actually finance
the operation of a Scheme while his competitor B runs havoc, imports from the
EU or any other country and does not self comply to the legislation or become a
Scheme member?

Of course,
these situations are not acceptable, and this is a call to all those who have
their own businesses at heart to make sure that they become Scheme paying
producers as soon as possible or else face the consequences of enforcement, if
they are free riders or even declared as self compliance but produce no
evidence of self compliance.

Some might at
present think that since there is a lack of enforcement, this will never come
into being and as such, they could continue and evade compliance. This is not
the case at all. Once the demerger issue at MEPA is settled, enforcement will
surely be there, and it will be smarter then ever before. This is the correct
way forward as only such actions by the Authorities will lead to a level
playing field. But never think that because enforcement is not on the ball
today, that it will never creep up to you. If you are a producer and you
currently think in this manner, then think twice! In time enforcement will
catch up on you.

GRTU and Green
Mt call on one and all in bona fede to comply to the Environmental Obligations
currently in place in respect to Packaging and Packaging Waste Legislation. Not
doing so now, could mean facing penalties or legal action from the Competent
Authority, today or tomorrow. Sooner or later this will have to be the case if
we want to continue to move on in the direction of the polluter pays principle
and the extended polluter pays principle.

During the
MCESD meeting held with the Prime Minister which discussed the Individual
Investment Programme GRTU President Paul Abela presented GRTU's proposals on
the Scheme:

1. The
property bought should be Eur 500K and not Eur 350K

2.
Investors should spend a period on the island each year

3.
Property should not be sold after 5 years

GRTU
stated publicly that it expected that its proposals would be taken seriously
into consideration.