Sustainability according to Leo

Leo Brincat is not the typical ‘taghna lkoll’ politician. He is sober, has a sense of propriety and history and not inclined to populist statements. In Opposition he used to listen a lot, asking for the advice of a wide range of environmentalists, experts and opinionists without expecting them to support his party. His criticism from the Opposition benches was always informed, moderate and driven by a concern for propriety. I am sure Leo Brincat was uncomfortable with the choice of Zonqor. 

But ultimately, he made the choice most politicians make: putting loyalty to the party over loyalty to the country and the environment. I’m not surprised. It’s what most politicians do all the time. For them it is a matter of survival.

What really irks me is that Brincat has not just abdicated his responsibility of defending the environment, but that he is also dedicating himself to the game of spin.

Having failed to use his powers of persuasion on government to save Zonqor, one would have expected an environmental minister to retain his composure by staying silent. Instead Brincat seems determined to defend the indefensible, even dig his own political grave to accommodate Castille.

Addressing the Malta Council for Economic and Social Development to discuss the ‘American University of Malta’ project, Brincat insisted that the project was sustainable.

“Many people in Malta are under the notion that sustainable development is simply about protecting the environment, whereas the UN describes it as being about the economy, social order and environment in that order.”

Sure enough Leo, but there are clear red lines on where development should take place or not. Sustainable development is all about promoting that sort of development which can take place within these established red lines.

Brincat has now reduced the idea of sustainable social development to a trickle-down of crumbs from mega-development projects benefiting from state-subsidised cheap public land. If this is sustainable development for Leo Brincat, I just wonder what the term means for Joseph Muscat and other prominent Cabinet members known for their pro-development bias.

In this case we are talking of development taking place right within the boundaries of an approved natural park. If the Environment Minister believes that construction of a campus in a natural park is an example of sustainable development, he is clearly not fit for purpose. I am sure he does not believe in this. 

Leo Brincat always justifies himself by saying that his role isn’t that of an NGO, “but you can rest assured that I make my ministerial voice heard on all projects that I feel obliged to.” 

The problem for Brincat is that he has failed to make his voice heard on an issue which will define the government’s relationship with the wider environmental movement for years to come. By speaking out in favour of ODZ development Brincat is simply rubbing more salt on the wound.

The latest spin after choosing Zonqor is that the government is doing everything to “drastically reduce the impact” by splitting the campus in two. But it does not really matter whether land developed in Zonqor will be the size of 12, 9 or 6 football pitches. The point at issue is that Zonqor is legally already part of a natural park and our government plans to take a chunk of it to sell it cheaply to a Jordanian construction company.

When the environment minister describes this kind of development as sustainable development, you know that we have reached the point of no return with Labour in government.