Malta must ensure Brazil meets Paris Climate Accord targets, PD says

Malta must use all resources at its disposal to ensure that Brazil meets its Paris Climate Accord targets and halts Amazon deforestation by blocking the EU-MERCOSUR trade deal if necessary, Partit Demokratiku said.

In a statement on Thursday, PD said that the climate crisis has reached a tipping point predicted to lead to the collapse of civilization.

In a recent Eurobarometer survey, the majority of Maltese, 33%, said that they perceive the climate crisis as the top global problem. Back in 2011, only 13% of Maltese respondents to a similar survey said that climate change is the world's most urgent predicament.

"The Maltese are ten steps ahead of the government as we are the most concerned in Europe about [climate change.] Will the government listen to the people?" PD said.

The party said that it acknowledges that Malta punches above its weight diplomatically and in international politics and that it should ensure Brazil meets its climate targets even if it has to block the trade deal between the EU and the Mercosur states—Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay—to do so. 

"The climate crisis has nearly reached a tipping point, beyond which the world threatens to spiral into an unstoppable cycle of warming, which is predicted to lead to the collapse of civilization. It has just become public knowledge that in all of Europe, the Maltese are the most concerned by climate change, and rightly so, because our air quality is among the worst in Europe," PD said.

Climate change is now considered the most serious problem by a relative majority in eight countries in the EU, including Sweden (50%), Denmark (47%), Finland and Malta (33%).

PD said that it's time that Europe pushes for stricter environmental legilsation while adding that small island states like Malta were most vulnerable to climate change.

"Partit Demokratiku believes that concrete measures must be taken internationally and a zero tolerance approach to environmental destruction backed by political and trade pressure against countries like Brazil. Nothing less will prevent us from losing Malta to the ravages of this crisis," PD said.