‘We need to be the voice of the less fortunate’, SOS Malta says

Malta needs to be the voice of the less fortunate, SOS Malta CEO Claudia Taylor-East said.

She was speaking during a debate organised by the European Parliament Liaison Office in Malta, the EC Representation in Malta, and Meusac.

It was held in the run-up to the European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s address next week. The address, known as the State of the EU speech, gives the Commission the chance to lay out its working plan and priorities for the year ahead. MEPs then debate these priorities, giving opinions and direction at an early stage of upcoming EU action.

Search and Rescue has become something which the population is up in arms about, but at the end of the day these are human lives, she added.

She also noted that the country lacks migrant-led organisations, which struggle. The few that exist are not funded, they have very few opportunities and they also have very limited training, she added.

Speaking at the event, MEP Roberta Metsola insisted it was not true that Malta was overshadowed by big countries: “We have the strength of conviction”

“As Malta, we have managed time and time again to punch above our weight, we have managed to reach our targets even when larger countries would not have, we just have to have the strength of conviction and the vision to get us there,” she said.