Roberta Metsola’s election as First Vice President of the European Parliament is no mean achievement and is a great honour for Malta. It is also a good day for the Nationalist Party, which worked so hard for Malta to find its rightful place in the European Union.
Her appointment marks the first time a Maltese MEP was selected to hold one of the top jobs within a European Union institution.
Metsola was nominated by the European People’s Party and nobody opposed her nomination – including members of other political groups – and she was elected by acclamation.
In her new role, she will be responsible for relations with national parliaments, inter-religious dialogue and relations with North America – all important portfolios.
She will also replace the president of the European Parliament whenever needed, including in the chairing of plenary sessions.
Metsola has been an MEP since 2013 and has earned the respect of not only the Maltese electorate but also many of her colleagues in Brussels for her work in the European Parliament.
Indeed, she has built up an impressive track record over the past few years in Brussels. In 2016, she was a co-rapporteur of a European Parliament report on a holistic approach to migration which was approved with a sizeable majority in plenary.
In 2017, she was elected as the EPP’s coordinator within the Committee for Civil Liberties Justice and Home Affairs (LIBE).
In 2019, she was the rapporteur on a new EU law on a Border and Coast Guard Agency that transformed Frontex and put in place 10,000 additional border guards in Europe.
And, in 2019, after she was re-elected an MEP, she was reconfirmed as the EPP’s coordinator in LIBE. Later that same year she was selected to co-chair the European Parliament’s Anti-Corruption Intergroup.
A ray of hope
Metsola’s election to such an important post in the European Parliament also offers a ray of hope to the many people in this country who are shocked by the way the rule of law has been undermined by Labour governments since 2013. The fact that she managed to overcome Malta’s poor image in European circles is a great personal achievement and testimony to her strong will and character.
One cannot overlook the fact that Metsola has been a target of a hate campaign by sections of the Labour Party and Labour media simply because she spoke up in favour of rule of law in Malta and took the Maltese government to task for failing to fight corruption. Without a doubt, her election to a new top role in the European Parliament puts her critics to shame.
Of particular disappointment is Prime Minister Robert Abela’s refusal to congratulate Metsola on her appointment. She has been congratulated, rightly so, by President George Vella, Opposition leader Bernard Grech, the Maltese parliament and other prominent EU politicians.
However, Abela was unable to put aside his partisan feelings and offer his best wishes. That, unfortunately, shows a level of immaturity that one should not expect of any prime minister.
These are difficult times, and the EU has many challenges to address, including COVID-19, Brexit, migration, strengthening rule of law in Europe, the situation in Belarus, fighting fake news and dealing with an unprecedented situation in the United States.
The European Parliament has a role to play in this scenario and we have no doubt that Metsola, as First Vice President, will rise to the occasion and continue to be an excellent ambassador.