The MMF held a meeting in the European Parliament with Dr Josianne Cutajar MEP in her capacity as Vice Chairperson of Intergroup on Seas, Rivers, Islands and Coastal Areas (SEARICA).
The MMF coordinated this meeting on behalf of the European Network of Maritime Clusters (ENMC) that was eager to discuss items of common interest to the MMF and other members of the European network from Luxembourg, Ukraine, Italy, Bulgaria and Spain present for the meeting. These topics included digitalization, finance support innovation in maritime and the latest developments concerning the implementation of the Fit for 55 Package, particularly in respect of the Emission Trading System (ETS) for shipping, for which the public consultation period had concluded on the day of the meeting.
During the meeting, the MMF representatives underlined their support for the Fit for 55 Package and its overall objectives but expressed serious concern for the underlying risk of carbon and business leakage which could occur from the implementation of the ETS system as applied to shipping due to the limited scope of the current legislation. The position of the MMF was entirely supported by the representatives of the Italian and Spanish national maritime clusters.
On her part, Dr Josianne Cutajar referred to the various instances when she had actively presented amendments to legislation and policies that did not take the holistic realities of special interest groups into account. She said that the one-size-fits all approach could not always be applied because while unity is essential, uniformity is not always the solution. The needs of certain specific islands or regions can differ from the needs of other areas within the EU territory and that respect and recognition of these differences is crucial for forging a more united Europe.”
The MMF was represented at this meeting by Vice President, Alex Montebello and CEO, Kevin J. Borg.
