Category: Archive – 2010

IL-GRTU,  TAPPOGJA  LILL- MEPA FUQ IL-HTIEGA LI S-SIDIEN TAL-NEGOZJI MALTIN JAQDU DMIERHOM FUQ IL-KWISTJONI TAL-IMMANIGJAR  TA' SKART

Il-Kamra Maltija tan-Negozji Zghar u Medji tilqa l-istqarrija tal-MEPA, dwar l-obbligi ta'produttur ta'skart tal-ippakeggjar. Li nzommu il-pajjiz nadif u li nimxu mar- regoli  u fl-interess ta' kullhadd iktar u iktar f'pajjiz zghir bhal Malta fejn id-distanza bejn il-post fejn nahdmu u l-post fejn nghixu hi tant zghira. L-Avviz Legali 277 ta' 2006 jpoggi obbligi fuq il-produttur jew importatur biex jiehu hsieb jirkupra u jirricikla ammont konsiderevoli ta' skart tal- ippakeggjar li jpoggi fis-suq. Importatur ghandu obbligu li jirregistra mall-MEPA u jidhol membru ta' skema awtorizzata tal-gbir ta'skart tal-ippakeggajr.

 

Bhala poplu li ghix fuq zewg gzejjer zghar ahna irridu lkoll nghamlu l-isforz taghna biex jirnexxielna ngawdu s-sbuhija u l-arja nadifa l-ewwel nett ghalina u ghal uliedna imma wkoll ghax ahna ghandna eluf ta' impjiegi jiddependu mit-turizmu. Li kulhadd jaqdi dmiru jaghmel ukoll sens ghax mhux sewwa li min jghati kaz u min le u wkoll ghax jekk kulhadd jaghti sehmu il-prezz li skond il-ligi jaqa' fuq in-negozjant li hu responsabbli li jdahhal il-Materjal f'Malta ma jaqax biss fuq dawk in-negozji li jaqdu dmirhom u jimxu mal-ligi u fuq dawk kollha li skond il-ligi huma obbligati li jirregistraw u ghalhekk in-nefqa ras ghal ras tonqos konsiderevolment ghax tinfirex u b'rizultat ikun inqas ukoll ghall-konsumatur. Il- Maltin u l-Ghawdxin igawdu doppjament ghax ikollhom pajjiz ahjar u jevitaw xi taxxi jew pizijiet godda biex l-awtoritajiet jaghmlu tajjeb ghal  xi  danni li jistghu jigu mposti fuq pajjizna bhala ‘infringement cost' dan barra li f'nuqqas ta' ko-operazzjoni l-konsumatur jkollu jgorr piz akbar f'pizijiet gholja fuq in-negozju li jispiccaw  jghollu  il-prezzijiet ta' prodotti l-aktar mixtrija mill-konsumaturi.

Kienet ghalhekk li l-GRTU f'isem il-kommunita kummercjali f'pajjizna dahlet b'kuragg kbir  ghal din il-bicca xoghol kbira li tohloq Skema Nazzjonali Ghall-Immanigjar ta' Skart biex in- negozjanti  Maltin u n-negozju taghhom jkollhom tarka u kenn fejn jistkennu waqt li jaqdu dmirhom lejn is-socjeta. Il-GRTU theggeg ghalhekk lin-negozji li huma obbligati taht il-ligi li jirregistraw li jfittxu li jidhlu fl-iskema Green Mt li l-GRTU waqfet ghalihom fuq bazi strettament not-for-profit li jfisser li din hi  I-Iskema Nazzjonali tal-Irkupru  ta' Skart tal-Ippakeggjar tghaddi kull qliegh li jibqa fl-ahhar tas-sena lill-istess imsiehba fl-iskema bhal tariffi mnaqqsa u wkoll lil-kommunitajiet lokali fejn il-Kunsill Lokali ikkuntrattja ma Green Mt f'sevizzi godda u estenzjoni tas-servizzi li toffri.

Green Mt bis-sahha tal-koperazzjoni shiha ta 41 Kunsill Lokali u hafna entitajiet ohra  sa l-ahhar ta 'Settembru qabzet ferm il-miri stabbiliti skond il-Pjan li ipprezentat lill-Awtoritajiet u b'hekk in-negozji msiehba mall-Iskema huma assigurati b'mod zgur effettiv u mhux biss fuq il-karta li l-obbligi ambjentali  taghhom skond li qed ikunu mwettqa. Importanti hafna ghalhekk li n-negozji li baqghu lura milli jirregistraw li jfittxu jirregistraw u jintrabbtu mall-Iskema taghhom qabel l-ahhar tas-sena biex ikunu zguri li jevitaw multi bla bzonn.  Il-GRTU qed toffri servizz shih lin-negozji biex tispjegalhom x'inhuma l-obbligi taghhom u tghinhom jirregistraw. Dan il-GRTU qed taghmlu biex tisgura li n-negozjanti li ma jissallbux bla bzonn mill- burokratici tal-istat li xogholhom hu li jaraw li l-ligijiet jitwettqu ma kulhadd.

A new study published by the European Commission has found that SMEs are not obtaining a percentage of public procurement contracts proportionate to their economic importance. The 'Evaluation of SMEs' access to public procurement markets in the EU' report found that despite winning an estimated 60% of public procurement contracts published in the Official Journal of the EU, SMEs are securing only 34% of the overall value of these contracts.

 

This is between 14 and 21 percent lower than their overall weight in the economy. Whilst medium-sized enterprises are not unduly underrepresented in this regard public procurement access for micro and small enterprises is clearly limited. Micro-enterprises secured a share of 6% of public procurement contracts, small enterprises 11% and medium-sized companies 17%.

The percentage of procurement contracts awarded to SMEs differs widely:

Smaller countries such as Bulgaria, Latvia, and Malta are characterised by better margins for SMEs and public procurement contracts.

A number of larger Member States such as France, Spain and Italy have managed to increase the share of SMEs in public procurement in the period 2005-2008

The share of successful SME applications for public procurement contracts dropped in most new Member States during the same period.

The analysis of successful applications demonstrates that the specific procedure and the type of procurer do not seem to hamper the chances of SMEs:

SMEs win more public workconstruction and engineering contracts than supply contracts. However, when looking at the value share secured SMEs seem to perform better with supplies and services contracts.

The size of the contract is relevant for SMEs and they perform better in public procurement when public buyers divide their tenders into lots. Cyprus, Slovenia, Poland and France are the most proficient at dividing cutting tenders into lots, whereas Czech Republic, Austria, Malta and Luxembourg rarely use this technique.

In 2008, direct cross-border procurement accounted for 1.5% of all published contracts, corresponding to about 3.7% of their combined value. In general, local and regional authorities engage less frequently, and public utilities more often in direct cross-border transactions. German and Cypriot companies, together with Austrian and Estonian enterprises were particularly successful in winning contracts abroad.

The domestic market was almost exclusively the source for revenues from public contracts for Romanian, Slovenian, Bulgarian and Polish companies.

The report highlights a number of procurement techniques that could be used by public buyers in view of facilitating SMEs' access to procurement:

Simplifying tendering procedures by allowing the presentation of certain administrative documents only when the offer was shortlisted or selected.

Improving the quality of information regarding public procurement available for potential bidders through various channels of communication.

Strengthening the dialogue between SMEs and procurers through face-to-face meetings on supplier events.

Debriefing unsuccessful bidders is important to help them understand how they can submit better offers in the future.

Measures helping to overcome the limited technical and financial capacities of SMEs, allowed by the Public Procurement Directives should be further encouraged.

The number of contract award notices (CANs) published on TED has increased steadily between 2002 and 2008, from 58,427 to 122,653. The rate of growth accelerated between 2007 and 2008, to an average 19% per annum.

Authorities from France published the largest number of contract award notices. They accounted for 27.5 % of all notices (88,033 in the 2006-2008 period). Since 2005, Poland is the second largest publisher of CANs (37,688 notices in the 2006-2008 period or almost 12% the estimated total). Germany, Spain, the UK and Italy remain large contributors , providing a combined estimated share of about 34%.

Please note that a draft Commission directive restricting the use of Bisphenol A in infant feeding bottles has received the qualified majority in the Standing Committee of the food chain and animal health. The measure will prohibit the manufacture of polycarbonate infant feeding bottles with BPA as from 1 March 2011 and the placing on the market and import as from 1 June 2011.

Malta Enterprise in collaboration with GRTU  is organizing a business delegation to visit Israel and the Palestinian Territories on a trade and investment promotion delegation. Match making meetings for participants will be carries out by Malta Enterprise.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Promising areas of investment, trade and technology commercialization include:

Pharmaceuticals

Life Sciences

Chemicals

 

Malta Enterprise will refund up to 60% of flight costs and per diem allowance. Malta Enterprise will refund one representative per participating company.

If you are interested kindly contact Abigail Mamo at GRTU so that you can fill in the application before 10 Dec 2010.

Today the 3^rd December is International Disabled Persons Day. The slogan chosen for this year's event by the National Commission Persons with Disability (KNPD) is Ngħixu b'Mod Sħiħ fis-Soċjetà (Living Fully in Society).

 

One important way of ensuring that disabled people can participate fully in society on an equal basis with others is through increasing their participation rate in the labour market. To this end, earlier this year, KNPD published the revised National Policy on the Employment of Disabled People after a year-long consultation process. The Policy, which can be downloaded from the KNPD website http://www.knpd.org/, covers both the private and the public sectors.

A number of schemes already exist from which employers, both SMEs and bigger firms, can benefit if they employ a disabled person. Among these, one finds the Bridging the Gap Scheme which offers a period of work exposure with an employer to enable them to acquire and demonstrate the skills necessary to carry out a particular job, prior to proper engagement. Further information about this and other schemes run by the ETC's Supported Employment Section can be found at http://www.etc.gov.mt/. 

Another new initiative is the Workplace Accessibility Scheme through which companies and self-employed individuals who employ other persons can receive tax deductions against expenses incurred to make the workplace more accessible for disabled employees. Further information about this scheme will soon be available from the KNPD website.

As part of the implementation process of the Employment Policy, KNPD has held talks with the GRTU and ETC in order to discuss how disabled people can be given equal opportunities in employment, both through the utilization of existing schemes and proposals for new ones.

The aim of these schemes and incentives is to offset the extra costs that may be incurred through the employment of disabled persons, while at the same time ensuring that employers can benefit from the skills and talents of these persons. After all, an inclusive labour market benefits not only those persons who are at the risk of exclusion from it, but employers and the whole of society as there is less reliance on welfare benefits, increased revenue from taxes and national insurance contributions and, most importantly, a greater possibility for disabled people to contribute to Malta's economic and social progress through their skills, knowledge and experience.

BACKGROUND

Directive 2009/48/EC was published in the Official Journal of the EU on the 30th June 2009. As from 20th July 2011, this Directive repeals the current Safety of Toys Directive 88/378/EEC, which was transposed under Maltese law as Legal Notice 373 of 2002.

 

KEY POINTS PROPOSED FOR REVISION

The overall objectives of the amendment is to ensure the highest level of safety for toys placed on the EU market and reinforce obligations on economic operators, notified bodies and authorities. The new Directive significantly updates the current regulations with the aim of providing a higher level of safety for toys.

Amongst the main changes are:

Clarified and reinforced obligations on economic operators involved in the supply chain from manufacturer to distributor. Economic operators must ensure that toys are safe and legally compliant before the toys are placed on the market (in particular, refer to Regulations 4 to 8 of the draft text);

Provision that toys must remain safe not only at the point when they are placed on the market, but also throughout their expected lifetime;

Warnings are now required to be presented to the consumer before purchase, even for on-line purchasing;

New warnings for toys in food, non-functional imitations of protective equipment, and use of fragrances (Schedule VII);

The Declaration of Conformity will become mandatory for all toys. The Declaration of Conformity must now contain a clear colour image of the toy (Regulation 12 and Schedule V);

Reinforced requirements on Notified Bodies – the private entities that test toys during the manufacturing stage (Regulations 16 to 18);

The concept of the precautionary principle is introduced – this means that Member States will be allowed to take restrictive actions as soon as they are suspicious on a particular toy (Regulation 20);

Reinforced obligations on market surveillance authorities (Regulation 20);

Reinforced requirements to prevent strangulation, asphyxiation and suffocation, in particular for toys co-mingled with food (such as chocolate eggs or snacks containing toys) (Schedule I, part I);

Certain carcinogenic, mutagenic and chemicals toxic to reproduction (CMRs) have been banned from use in toys, unless they are inaccessible to children or in quantities considered to be acceptable by other legislation governing safety of chemicals  (Schedule I, part III);

55 allergenic fragrances have been restricted (cannot exceed 100mg/kg). 11 other allergenic fragrances are listed as being allowed for use in toys as long as their presence is included in the label of the toy (Schedule I, part III);

Stricter migration limits for 19 heavy metals such as aluminium, arsenic, copper, lead, mercury, nickel and zinc (Schedule I, part III);

In terms of hygiene, soft toys (textile toys) need to be washable, unless they contain a mechanism that can be damaged by water (Schedule I, part V);

WHO WILL BE AFFECTED?

Manufacturers, Authorised Representatives, Notified Bodies, Importers, Distributors and Users of toys.

WHAT PRODUCTS WILL BE AFFECTED?

Products considered as toys under the new revised definition (Regulation 2).

DEADLINE FOR FEEDBACK

Feed back to arrive at our offices by 23rd December 2010.

CONTACT DETAILS

Feedback or requests for clarifications are to be addressed to:

;

Green MT launches a Mobile Waste Container Washing Vehicle. The bring-in-sites currently catered for by Green MT are being hygienically cleaned in an enclosed compartment on a mobile vehicle set up for this operation only.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The vehicle has a back tail lift to load the 1100  litre waste container and is then washed in an enclosed compartment. It is then placed back to its formal position ready to be used by the public in general.

Green MT proudly boasts of investing in equipment so that it provides a better service to end customers in 41 Local Councils.

Tomorrow, Saturday 4th December 2010, Green MT will be distributing recycle bags to all Sliema residents.  Collection points will be set up at Annunciation Square, Sacro Couer Church, Strand (Near old Distillery) and at the Local Council Premises. Residents will be given Recycle Bags from these collection points. Those residents who do not avail themselves of this service tomorrow between 9.00am and 12.30 pm, can collect them during the coming week from Sliema Local Council premises against presentation of ID card.

Two years on from the endorsement of the Small Business Act by the Member States, the EESC Employers' Group held on the 2nd of December, in partnership with BUSINESSEUROPE, EUROCHAMBRES and UEAPME, a Seminar to assess the added value of the EU initiative for individual business managers and small and medium-sized enterprises.

 

Adopted by the Council of Ministers in December 2008, the Small Business Act for Europe applies to all companies which are independent and have fewer than 250 employees, i.e. 99% of all European businesses. It lays down a set of 10 principles for improving the overall approach to entrepreneurship both at EU and national level.

GRTU Director General Vincent Farrugia, also member of the EESC Employers Group spoke in this activity. He gave a resume on the developments from the European Charter for Small Enterprises till the SBA. He explained that a particular success of Charter was of holding yearly meetings and deciding on the next year's theme to acheive success on a yearly basis.

On the Lauch of the SBA we were excited because we thought it would be an actual ACT with actual legislative power. During last year's birthday we celebrated for having the basis of the Act and the power of monitoring. Today, even though we have schemes that are assisting business, the results are very poor.

"It is incredible that during a period of recession where most Micro and small enterprises continued to sustain the economy at their own expense, despite of the diminished total economic performance, that rather than strengthening what has been stated in the SBA, the resolve by the EU Commission nd by most EU 27 Governments, rather than increasing has actually diminished. The Member States who are doing well in support of the pillars behind the SBA are doing so because they had the structures already in place without waiting for the advent of the SBA. The Small and Micro enterprises we represent want results. The message I passed to the EU commission is emphasised in this single slogan we want results" said Vince Farrugia.

Andrea Benassi from UEAPME also spoke in this important occation and he strongly backed what Mr Farrugia stated. Mr Benassi said: "We want results on the SBA, should be the slogan for 2011. So that when we meet again next year to celebrate the 3rd anniversary we would really have reason to celebrate.