Category: Archive – 2013

GRTU on behalf
of the Tobacco Product Wholesalers had this week
written to the Minister for Finance following a complaint by the sector that
they were not being given cigarettes to distribute to retailers by the local
Tobacco Importers.

This allegedly resulted from a
decision taken by the Commissioner for Revenue and/or the Controller of Customs
who had imposed restrictive quotas on the quantity of cigarettes released to
local importers, pending the forthcoming Budget. This arbitrary decision had
restricted the market resulting in a situation where our members, the Tobacco
Product Wholesalers, were not being given supplies to distribute to retailers
due to the fact that the importers have reached or exceeded the quotas which
had been imposed upon them by Customs.

GRTU insisted that sufficient
supplies should be released for our members, the Tobacco Product Wholesalers,
to continue surviving for the forthcoming weeks until the Budget is passed and
the new Excise Duties are made available.

Following this intervention, GRTU was
pleased to note that an agreement has been reached with the Finance Ministry to
allow wholesalers to keep replenishing their stock normally.

L-Awtorità ta'
Malta Dwar ir-Riżorsi (MRA) ġiet infurmata li l-Gvern bi ħsiebu jiddikjara
l-bejgħ tal-gass fiċ-ċilindri (LPG) fid-djar bħala servizz ekonomiku ta'
interess ġenerali (Service of General Economic Interest – SGEI).

Huwa
importanti li l-konsumatur igawdi mid-dritt ta' għażla ta' ċilindri u jkun
offrut ċilindri LPG ta' operaturi differenti permezz ta' sistema ta'
distribuzzjoni magħrufa bħala multi-flag, irrispettivament mill-lokalita' ta'
fejn joqgħod, bi prezzijiet raġonevoli, bi trasparenza u mingħajr
diskriminazzjoni.

Fl-istess
ħin operaturi ġodda jingħataw l-opportunita' biex jużaw din is-sistema ta'
distribuzzjoni. B'hekk ikun aċċertat li s-suq ikun wieħed kompetittiv.

Għaldaqstant,
ser issir konsultazzjoni pubblika dwar proposti marbutin ma din id-deċizjoni.

 Aktar dettalji dwar din il-konsultazzjoni
pubblika jistgħu jinkisbu mill-websajt tal-Awtorità – www.mra.org.mt.

Stakeholders
u l-pubbliku ġenerali huma mistiedna biex iressqu l-kummenti tagħhom dwar din
l-proposta.

Għalhekk
qed jingħata perjodu ta' zmien li jagħlaq il-Ġimgħa, 6 ta' Diċembru

2013.

Kummenti
bil-miktub jew b'email għandhom jiġu ndirizzati lil:

Kap Eżekuttiv

L-Awtorità
ta' Malta Dwar ir-Riżorsi

Millennia,
Second Floor,

Aldo
Moro Road,

Marsa
MRS 9065

jew

E-mail:

GRTU categorically rebuts claims by
Liquigas Malta that the GRTU is somehow backing or supporting a cartel of
23 Gas Distributors and will hold Liquigas responsible for damages sustained.

Liquigas Malta has no limits to
arrogance. It entered a market where an efficient system of distribution
existed already. A system that was and still is based entirely on consumer
benefit and that has been in place for over forty years.

Conveniently in October 2008, a few
months after the previous general election, Liquigas was served with a silver
platter by virtue of the tailor made Legal Notice 249 of 2008, that established
the Gas Market Regulations from which Liquigas benefitted to the detriment of
the Gas Distributors who were left in the dark.

The 1992 agreement, which was
signed between the Regulator and the Gas Distributors, is still valid. The
Report issued by the Director General of the Office for Competition within the
Malta Competition and Consumer Affairs Authority (MCCAA) has not been confirmed
and is still pending before the Competition and Consumer Appeals Tribunal in
Court.  Consequently it has neither been confirmed nor refused.

The territorial
exclusivity remains in place, as it is not Liquigas who decides rights or
wrongs in this country. The notion of territorial gas distribution is as out
dated as consumer rights are, which means not at all. The Gas Distributors will
continue to make sure that the service to our end consumers is provided in the
best way possible, despite the fact that everyday Liquigas tries to create new
stumbling blocks to the livelihood of these Gas Distributors and to the service
that the Maltese consumer enjoys.

The Gas Distributor agreement was
signed with the Regulator primarily to guarantee an efficient gas distribution
service even to those consumers who live in remote areas, as well as to
sensitive consumers including the elderly who face several flights of stairs to
reach their home without the benefit of an elevator.

Liquigas is aware that if it
succeeds in eliminating the Gas Distributors, then it would be free to operate
a monopoly.

GRTU refers Maltese consumers to
the fact that in March 2010, Liquigas SpA in Italy was fined 17.1 million
Euro for collusion with two other companies. Together they created a cartel for
ten years in the island of Sardinia, from 1995 to 2005. In those years the
price of a 12 kg cylinder in Sardinia rose to €32.00 per cylinder for a home
delivery. This is an undeniable fact confirmed by the EU's highest Court and
which Liquigas cannot deny.

GRTU always questioned who
shouldered the responsibility for the due diligence exercise prior to
giving the green light for a foreign investor to come into the market and
arbitrarily try to dictate how consumers are to be treated, and at whatprice.

The assertion made by Mr. Roberto
Cappelluto, Liquigas Malta CEO, that there exists a GRTU backed cartel, is
unconfirmed by the competent Tribunal and therefore presently unfounded in fact
and in law.

In this week's MCESD GRTU President
Paul Abela like the other social partner representatives gave an outline of the
proposals that had been already presented formally by GRTU. Paul Abela
explained that GRTU's proposals are targeted towards building confidence and
driving growth, which is the name GRTU chose for this year's Budget proposals.

Our proposals have been divided into 3 categories: Incentives in favour of
enterprise, Improving the working environment and Employment. Under these three
categories GRTU has included a number of proposals and important schemes and
incentives that would help enterprise, improve certain services Government is
providing and generate employment.

Mr Abela asked the Minister to
announce at the earliest possible what the indirect taxes that were mentioned
would be so as not to create unnecessary uncertainties.

The Minister once again
mentioned that the Budget speech should be read on Monday 4th November. He
emphasized that the Budget has not been finalized and therefore more suggestions
could be potentially taken on board.

GRTU is hopeful that our well
thought proposals will be considered favorably and we look forward to another
MCESD meeting where Government's plans will be explained in much greater
detail.

As part of the
Management Partnership agreement between the Malta-EU Steering and Action
Committee (MEUSAC) and the European Commission, MEUSAC is currently
implementing a project, entitled, ‘The Economic Recovery: Overcoming the Crisis
Together'.

The project aims to engage stakeholders to evaluate how the crisis
has affected their operations and seek ways how to contribute to the economic
recovery. This is to be achieved through the organisation of a series of seminars
and information sessions.

 Details
of the event:

Date:
Thursday, October 31, 2013;

Place:
Waterfront Hotel, Gzira;

Time:
8:30am – 12:00pm.

Due to space
limitations, only persons representing the government, businesses, research
institutions and the civil society are invited.

Should you be interested in
attending, kindly register by sending an email on: by not later than Monday
October 28, 2013.

Nearly 60% of EU internet users shop online – Clothes, travel
& holiday accommodation: most common online purchases – Internet access
in the EU28 is widespread and today people use the internet for a wide range of
activities, among others to order goods and services online.

GRTU Council
Member Patrick Cutajar attended the conference representing GRTU. European
Commission President Hose Manuel Barroso opened the conference and gave an
introduction. President Barroso emphasized that the aim of the EU is to close
gaps, and keep an eye on disparities and religious differences. 

24% of
the EU's population is at risk of poverty and the EU is asking the national
Governments to allocate 20% of Social Funds to be used to combat poverty and
improve and create jobs.

The EU
also needs to intensify social dialogue. President Barroso concluded by saying
that the ‘EU needs an enhanced social cohesion'

The
European Council President Van Rumpoy continued on Barroso saying that the
major objective of the EU is to create employment. Currently the EU has a slow
recovery growth but this is susceptible, growth alone is not enough, jobs are
important but not sufficient because it takes time, we need to find better ways
to reach the micro-society. The EU is pushing Member States to take measures to
improve youth employment. The EU 2020 objectives remain there and they should
be each nations' strategic targets. From October 2013 onwards, the Commission
will start using improved analytical tools to measure jobs, unemployment and
social trends to act faster. It is important to have long term objectives in
the socio-economic strategy.

Why does socio-economic convergence in the economic and monetary
union matter

During
this discussion it was mentioned that 10 years of EMU saw processes improved.
The EU is highly divided in fiscal terms and no fiscal cohesion exists. The
current unemployment situation is a long term issue and needs long term focus
and planning. People have lost trust in EU administration and this needs to be
re-established since that is why the reason the EU exists in the first place. A
scorecard is being created to analyse new indicators and trends. It was noted
that the most important thing is what actions will be taken when reading the
metrics.

There
are conflicts between austerity and social concerns. Austerity brought
unemployment, inequalities and exclusions within the social strata. When we
mention competitiveness we are accepting that it includes lower wages,
mentioning labour market friendly measures evolved into weaker labour
rights.  The proposed monitoring is
however unlikely to make a difference. The realisation of the social dimension
regime change is like opening a ‘Pandora's Box'. Concluding to this it was
noted that the problem we are discussing is not an EU issue but a world's
issue.

Detecting key employment and social imbalances and challenges in
the EMU

The
proposed scoreboard of key employment and social indicators relevant for the
EMU's well-functioning has been discussed. 
The EU Commissioner for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion Mr
Andor noted that what we do not analyse we do not fix.  The scoreboard was explained. 

Social aspects in the macroeconomic imbalances

If
something occurs in one member state it will have an effect on the other member
states. This change is needed because in the issue that happened prior to year
2011, only the financial aspect was taken into consideration. Imbalances and
corrective actions should be presented and followed better by social actions
that will be known through the new indicators. 

The one-stop-shop for the GRTU PVPFScheme – GRTU will this year be participating in the October Home fair
and will be accompanied by all the GRTU Approved retailers that are
participating in the GRTU PVPFScheme, in a dedicated pavilion. This will be a
great opportunity to expose the scheme to consumers and for retailers of  renewable energy products to showcase their offers. The fair will take place
between the 24^th and 27^th of October at MFCC. 

GRTU APPROVED retailers are being offered a space in the
pavilion free of charge in return for their participation in the scheme and the
effort and improvement in standards (during the sale, installation and after
sale) this has meant. Retailers participating in the scheme have undergone a
number of inspections in order to obtain this certification. The ultimate aim
is to safeguard clients by ensuring quality, increase customer satisfaction,
improve the reputation of the sector and increase consumer confidence. The
system initiated by GRTU ensures customers the best quality when purchasing a
PV system.

Within the pavilion there will also be representatives of the
Ministry for Energy and the Conservation of Water and the Malta Resources
Authority who are jointly sponsoring the event and who will be providing
information to the general public.

The PVPFScheme is being offered with the support of Bank of
Valetta. The Scheme allows families to purchase their PV system over a period
of 3 years with no fees and at very advantageous interest rates, with the
remaining interest being paid by the retailer. This greatly increases the
affordability of a PV system by allowing the purchaser to pay the loan amount
without paying the interest and concurrently saving from electricity bills.

The PVPFS scheme may be applied when purchasing from GRTU
APPROVED retailers only.

GRTU Renewable
Energy Section President Noel Gauci has last week participated in a very
interesting  conference on Skills Needs
in Greening Economies. It was very encouraging to note that most issues we face
in Malta are similar to those in other European countries, in Malta however
these issues are more acute.

The main
issue discussed was the need for skills to be able to maintain existing jobs
and further investing in skills for green jobs. At the same time that lay-offs
were inevitably created in some countries we saw the creation of new green jobs
however individuals who were used to traditional jobs needed to be trained so
that they could fit in the newly created green jobs. Adaptation here is also a
key element, and this applies both for industry and the workforce. For instance
a diesel engine manufacturing company needed to adapt and restructure to start
manufacturing gas engines in order to remain sustainable and competitive, while
its employees needed to be trained and skilled for such a change and to
maintain their jobs. This is a case where the companies became greener and so
did the jobs in that company.

One
project presented by Jerry Van Den Berg was of particular interest for Malta.
The project addressed issues such as the target to treat all waste as a
resource by 2020. Recycling and re-use are very attractive and have multiple
benefits for any country, creating substantial job generation.

Another
project was presented from Germany called Qualergy 2020, a project funded by
Intelligent Energy Europe. This project is also of particular interest for
Malta and we encourage the undertaking of similar project. The project focused
on developing new techniques for building energy efficient buildings in every
aspect such as the construction materials used, renewable heat (in Malta's case
we can include cooling), PV electricity, Biogas/mass, etc.

The
European Commission Directorate General Education and Culture spoke about skill
shortages in the EU. These ranged from basic skills to shortages of skills
related to trades people, sales persons and engineers. The best way to tackle
this problem is for education institutions to Education institutions to partner
and work closely with industry.

During
the conference the need for governments to put tools (including funds) at the disposal
of the private sector, industry, companies was particularly stressed. This to
develop technologies and create RES related jobs.

It is
always a pity when enthusiastic individuals are not listened to and thus not
taken into consideration when governments takes decisions. Governments need to
listen more to social partners and experts in various sectors. Otherwise the
best brains are discouraged and lost.

One EU
representative very diplomatically remarked that he was surprised to see
countries participating included Latvia, Romania, Bulgaria and….. Malta! Malta
needs to work hard to be reach the levels of countries like UK, Germany and
Scandinavia.

Patrick
Itschert concluded that social partners are instrumental and essential for
successful sustainable green jobs creation. Recognition is essential for
initiatives taken by social partners. (This is a case in point for our Green MT
and GRTU APPROVED & PVPFS schemes).

Of
course change will bring consequences, but change is necessary and if we see
what happened in other countries, we realize it is not as bad and difficult as
it seems. In the end training will also prove to be key for better jobs, better
wages, and better lives. Change in lifestyle can lead to a better environment.
It is a shame that in many institutions the right hand does not know what the
left hand is doing, and Governments should put their act together. Coordination
is important, governments should listen to and involve social partners.