“It is already close to impossible for first-time buyers to access the housing market today. New Green Deal measures will make it even harder to buy property in Malta, especially for first-time buyers who risk seeing price hikes due to new rules requiring new buildings to be net zero emission as from 2030. If elected as an MEP I will make sure that new rules do not put the burden of the European Green Deal on property buyers. The Maltese Government must do more to leverage EU funds to sustain property buyers to invest in energy efficiency. The Green deal has to be a deal for the Maltese as well.” Peter Agius, MEP Candidate for the upcoming European elections taking place on 8th June made these remarks after meeting Federico Nahuel Lazzari, Secretary-General of Build Europe, the association representing developers and homebuilders in the EU, including the Malta Developers Association (MDA).
Federico Nahuel Lazzari welcomed the initiative of Dr Peter Agius to meet and discuss policy priorities to help property buyers in Europe. “I would like to thank Dr. Agius for his availability and his stance on housing affordability. Build Europe has been working for many years to raise concerns at the EU level about the housing crisis, which prevents millions of citizens from accessing decent housing at affordable costs. We hope that our Manifesto will help EU policymakers find efficient solutions, and we are happy that Dr. Agius acknowledges with us the importance of home in citizens’ lives”, said Federico Nahuel Lazzari.
The need to address housing affordability is vital also when taking into account wages in Malta. According to Eurostat Maltese wages are lower than most other EU countries. Wages have improved across Europe since 2016 except in Malta. In this regard Peter Agius stressed “Maltese wages at a stand-still. Far from being the best in Europe, Maltese wages have stalled where European wages keep growing. This makes it even harder for young people to buy their first property. New EU directives on energy efficiency are now expected to lead to further property hikes as new buildings will need to be zero emissions as from 2030. I call on the Maltese Government to launch a national consultation process on the implementation of these new rules. Let’s not wait till the eleventh hour to start the change needed in the property market.”
Peter Agius who has 20 years of EU experience said “Our emphasis should be how to make the best of Europe in securing easy funding for property convertors, renovators and builders to offer clean energy properties at affordable prices.”
He concluded that the burden of the Green Deal cannot be carried by the property buyers, especially not first-time buyers. He said that if elected to the European Parliament he will ensure that EU legislation is fit for the Maltese Islands. “Shaping EU laws to our needs is one of my priorities. If elected as MEP I want to make use of provisions in the European People’s Party electoral manifesto, which advocates for assessing the territorial impact of European measures and laws before implementation—a principle I actively advocated for over the last three years and which I intend to uphold for Malta’s benefit.”
