“We need to do more to ensure that islands in Europe are not left behind.”
MEP Roberta Metsola stressed the importance of adopting a more flexible EU approach when focusing on Gozo and similar island regions. Addressing an event in the European Parliament dedicated to the specific characteristics of islands and the way these are taken into account in terms of the 2014-2020 EU budget, Dr Metsola said that islands around the EU require “us to work together to ensure that no one is left behind in our Europe.”
She said that apart from Malta being an island nation, “we also have island region, Gozo, with its own characteristics, its own need and its particular difficulties with double insularity.”
Dr Metsola pointed out that for the 2014-2020 period, Malta has been allocated around €729 million in Cohesion Policy funding. 90.3% of the funds were allocated to Malta, leaving Gozo with just 9.7%.
Since EU accession in 2004, Gozo has benefited in various ways from EU membership. The EU recognises that Gozo faces severe and permanent natural or demographic issues that require particular attention and that, because of its dependence on Malta, which is itself an island, faces the problem of double insularity. A Declaration annexed to the 2003 Treaty of Accession on the “Island Region” of Gozo was designed specifically to address Gozo’s inherent needs, but “more needs to be done” argued Dr Metsola.
She stressed that, “As MEPs we must continue to support Gozo and similar island regions in reducing the disparities between their level of development and that of the rest of the EU. Too often we legislate here in a one-size-fits-all approach that does not work equally in every region of the EU. We need to be more flexible.”
The Maltese Islands’ insularity and peripheral factors reflect the vulnerability of Malta and especially Gozo, which requires particular attention as it is highly dependent on Malta’s economy, said Dr Metsola.
She went on to say that there are a number of areas of concern that are unique to Gozo and that must be addressed in a coherent and holistic manner be it in creating the right conditions for strong job creation on the island or seriously improving the links between Gozo and Malta.
On the Ten-T transport network, Dr Metsola said we are still lagging behind, precisely due to the peripheral nature of the Maltese Islands. This year more attention will be given to the maritime aspect of the Ten-T network, with work being done to promote maritime motorways. In this regard, Dr Metsola said: “It is my hope that Malta and Gozo will feature in this revised plan with greater emphasis on maritime trade.
