Miriam Dalli to coordinate Socialists’ European Green New Deal policies

Labour MEP Miriam Dalli will be guiding the Socialists and Democrats policies in favour of a new economic model that ensures competitiveness and environmental protection as part of the EU’s Green New Deal.

Dalli was entrusted with this role following her track record in the European Parliament on issues where it was vital to ensure competitiveness, economic integrity and environmental protection.

As the vice-president responsible for this portfolio, Miriam Dalli will be working on a new industrial policy that ensures innovation, social protection, economic competitiveness and climatic integrity.

“The European Green New Deal will be our priority for the coming years. As Socialists and Democrats we will continue working hard to make sure that the economic transformation that is required will ensure our industries’ competitiveness and protect our workers. Ensuring a proper transition will offer us a business opportunity that our economies should tap into whilst making sure that no one is left behind,” Dalli said yesterday.

As part of her portfolio, Dalli will be coordinating the work on the EU’s first European Climate Law which the president-elect of the European Commission committed herself to introduce in the first 100 days of the new European Commission. This climate law will be setting the basis for the long-term ambition of achieving carbon neutrality by 2050 and mid-term targets for 2030, which the S&D want to see set at 55 per cent.

Dalli will also be overseeing work related to the Just Transition Fund, a fund which is to be set up to help prepare workers for changes that can occur in certain industries, particularly energy-intensive ones. Miriam Dalli has already managed to set up a Just Transition Fund in the regulation that set standards for CO2 emissions from passenger cars and light commercial vehicles.

“It is our priority to protect workers. As part of my work, I will be working on a cross-cutting strategy to move towards an economy that works with less emissions. This can help us as a continent to remain competitive while at the same time ensure that we re-skill our current workforce. This is also about educating young people to be prepared for the economies of the future,” Miriam Dalli insisted.

She will also be responsible for agricultural and fisheries policies, including a new approach for a sustainable Blue Economy. Dalli will also be working on an S&D strategy for Green Financing and also the political group’s strategy to address Energy Poverty.

Dalli, who serves as the Labour Party’s head of delegation at the European Parliament, has also been entrusted with supervising policies pertaining to the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety Committee; emissions from all transport modes; the Agriculture and Rural Development Committee; the Fisheries Committee and the energy sector.

Miriam Dalli is also the S&D’s vice-president for communications.