PN to present Private Member’s Bill to make ERA more transparent

The Nationalist Party will, today, present a Private Member’s Bill regarding the Environment and Resources Authority, this newsroom is informed.

The bill will state that ERA Board meetings should be open to the public, that the minutes be made public and that the agenda should be communicated publicly before every meeting.

In addition, the PN’s bill proposes that NGOs and members of the public be able to register as third parties in any applications, and be allowed to file representations and objections.

Speaking with The Malta Independent, PN MP Robert Cutajar, who is the party’s spokesperson for the Environment, explained that the PN’s aim is to create more transparency in ERA’s operations and in the way it deals with NGOs and the public.

“This is the first in a number of initiatives and proposals the opposition will make regarding the environment in coming weeks,” he said.

Cutajar previously said that because of the way the ERA Board works today, the NGOs are not being seriously listened to. He explained that the PN is presenting this bill after holding consultation sessions with eNGOs on the subject matter.

Indeed the ERA has been under fire as of late, such as over the Comino road works and the Dingli road works.

Cutajar had previously filed a number of cases with the Ombudsman asking for an investigation into possible environmental damage, which include over the Comino and Dingli works, as well as in Marsa, Attard, Dwejra Lines in Mosta, near the White Tower in Mellieħa, in Pembroke and also in Mrieħel.