The European Commission has opened infringement proceedings against Malta for failings on environmental justice, energy efficiency and the digital economy.

In three letters of formal notice sent to Malta on Thursday, the EC called on the country to ensure “broad access” to environmental justice, report on the energy efficiency of buildings, and implement an EU regulation on data access and sharing.

Malta has two months to respond and address the shortcomings before the European Commission considers sending the country reasoned opinions – the step before it decides whether to refer a country to the EU Court of Justice.

On environmental justice, the EC said the public and environmental NGOs had a “limited right” to access courts in matters of nature, waste management and water policy.

Stressing its commitment to making sure environmental laws are enforced, the commission said it is “very important” that the public is able to ask the courts to verify if laws are being upheld.

This is not the first time the EC has taken Malta to task over environmental matters - in 2019 over environmental studies for planning applications and multiple times over its failure to obey European laws on hunting and trapping.

Hungary was also singled out by the commission for failures on access to environmental justice.

In a statement, Nationalist MEP candidate Peter Agius said the government must come clean and provide the legal instruments for citizens and civil society to challenge the authorities for non-implementation of EU standards.

"This would open up new avenues for us to fight for our rights to a clean environment, free from sewage in the sea leading to infections and cleaner air with current particulate matter levels leading to the highest rates of respiratory conditions," Agius said.

In a separate letter, the commission reminded Malta and six other countries of their obligation to report on the energy efficiency of buildings.

It said member states must set minimum energy performance requirements in a way that balances investments and savings – known as ‘cost-optimal levels’ - and report these regularly to the EU.

It noted that Malta, along with Bulgaria, Greece, Lithuania, Portugal, Romania and Slovenia had failed to submit their third cost-optimal report.

Last year, Maltese MEPs from both sides of the house voted against a European Parliament proposal to set clear deadlines by which buildings must be more energy efficient and adopt an EU-wide climate-neutral building sector by 2050 – a proposal that passed despite some opposition.

On the digital economy, the EC said that 18 countries, including Malta, had failed to assign a national authority the task of implementing an EU law on data access.