Karmenu Vella

Karmenu Vella 2007

Karmenu Vella (born June 19, 1950 in Żurrieq ) is a Maltese politician of the Malta Labor Party (MLP). From 2014 to 2019 he was Commissioner for Environment, Maritime Affairs and Fisheries in the EU Commission under Jean-Claude Juncker . Before that he was Minister in Malta several times. Outside of his political mandates, he worked in various companies, including as CEO of Corinthia Hotel International.

education

After attending school, he studied architecture and civil engineering and then tourism management . He then worked as a civil engineer and then as an architect . In addition, he was temporarily Secretary for Services of the General Workers Union .

Political career

He began his political career as a candidate for the Malta Labor Party (MLP) in the 1976 elections when he was elected MP and was re-elected in the subsequent elections of 1981 , 1987 , 1992 , 1996 , 1998 and 2003 . During this time he represented the interests of constituency 5 .

From 1981 to 1984 Vella was Minister for Public Works and then Minister for Industry in the governments led by the MLP. Most recently, Vella was tourism minister in the cabinet of Prime Minister Alfred Sant from October 1996 to September 1998 . In the opposition he was a member of the MLP's “shadow cabinet” as spokesman for tourism policy .

After leaving the government, he first became vice chairman and then chairman of the Corinthia Hotel International Hotel Management and Operating Company.

Just before the 2008 elections, Jeffrey Pullicino Orlando, a member of the Conservative Nationalist Party , accused Vella and another former MLP minister of not having taxed income. Vella himself was re-elected to parliament as an MLP candidate in constituency 5 in the elections on March 8, 2008 . As a member of parliament, he was a member of the Select Committee.

In 2013, Vella became Minister of Tourism in Prime Minister Joseph Muscat's cabinet .

EU commissioner

Karmenu Vella has been a member of the European Commission as Commissioner for Environment, Maritime Affairs and Fisheries since 2014 . When awarding the fishing quotas for 2015, he was in charge of turning the sustainability policy of his predecessor Maria Damanaki towards an unsustainable fisheries policy.

In 2015, Vella commissioned an extensive “fitness check” of the EU nature conservation guidelines Natura 2000 . The study confirmed that it is not EU law but poor local implementation and EU agricultural policy that are the main problem for species loss. Bird species in the intensively used agricultural landscape continue to decrease dramatically, while the populations of many species protected in Natura 2000 areas are recovering. In plenary debates in the European Parliament, Vella did not speak out clearly in favor of maintaining the guidelines, despite repeated requests from MEPs.

In December 2016 the Commission decided to continue the nature protection directive Natura 2000.