Malta is quite unique. Although we have our fair share of problems as anywhere else in Europe, few would doubt that, particularly in view of our small size, Malta offers experiences not easily replicated in other larger countries.

At the same time, however, we must not allow this trait to stand in our way of maximising our potential within Europe. As a country, indeed as a people, we must learn not to have any fear to stand up and make our voices heard. It is on the basis of this that I am campaigning for ‘a stronger voice in Europe’.

When the people of Malta opted for European Union membership they did so in the belief that through membership, Malta could transform itself from the mediocrity of the past to a more vibrant and stronger European player. During the past five years, we have started to learn the ropes and get a real taste of the good and the bad of European Union membership. There can be no doubt that there is still a lot of hard work ahead of us.

It is with this in mind that I am embarking upon this new challenge in my political life. Having for the past four years represented Malta in the Committee of the Regions of the European Union (CoR), I have come to learn that the best results are achieved through networking and coalition building with other politicians from the other member states. In my work as a member of the CoR’s Commission of Economic and Social Affairs, and rapporteur on gender equality and non-discrimination, I have seen what can be done at European level to improve the situation of women and men in all EU member states. This experience, particularly given the current economic crisis that has engulfed us all, has taught me that it is in our collective best interest to cooperate with one another and strive as much as possible to seek common solutions to the problems facing us all.

Together with my colleagues in the Labour Party (Malta PL), I am contesting this election on the basis of the platform set by the Party of European Socialists (PES) under the banner ‘People First’. It is a platform for which I am fully supportive. I believe that in everything we do we need to put people’s interests first. It is also because of this that I believe that it is wrong to cut the close link that exists between the economic and the social spheres.

I am of the view that the economy is there for the service of people, and not people for the service of the economy. The current international economic crisis is putting paid to all those philosophies which glorified the false god of a free market. If we truly want the best interest of the people, we need to do everything we can to stop those who, for their often hidden interests, want to take our societies back to a time when the law of the jungle determined who moved forward and who was left behind, to a time, allow me to say, of Charles Dickens and the poor houses.

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