Election Desk: (National) Park life

Welcome to the Election Desk. This is where we round up the major headlines of the last 24 hours, together with some of the more light-hearted and funnier sides of the campaign trail.

The deed is done

It was a good morning for Abela on Wednesday, but ADPD made sure the afternoon was slightly less comfortable.

The prime minister formally concluded the deal that will hand Manoel Island and Fort Tigne back to public ownership. In an afternoon conference, Abela pledged that local plans will be amended to ensure Manoel Island, White Rocks and all other parks within development zones are ringfenced from any future development. He also promised extensions to parks in Wied Inċita, Bengħajsa and Salina, and pledged that any government-owned land rationalised into the development zone in 2006 will not be handed over for speculation.

But ADPD were quick to point out that Manoel Island was actually handed to private developers through a parliamentary resolution approved by both Labour and the PN back in January 2000. While Abela presents himself as the person who gave Manoel Island back to the people, his party had helped give it away in the first place.

ADPD deputy chairperson Carmel Cacopardo said the handback was the result of political convenience and a shift in public opinion, not principle.

Meanwhile, the executive chairperson of the Planning Authority was photographed playing padel with the man behind the illegal padel courts on the same island that the PA must now decide on. Abela dismissed concerns on this close relationship between the two, insisting that Buttigieg will not be on the board deciding the application.

A drone shot of Manoel Island. Photo: Matthew Mirabelli.

Let the sun shine, but carefully

Abela also floated the idea of introducing solar rights for homeowners whose PV panels end up in the shade because a neighbour’s building has risen higher. Labour would allow a one-time compensation payment calculated based on the remaining service life of the panels and how much less energy they would generate because of the adjacent development.

This is new policy territory, but there is an obvious irony to it: a government that’s been very permissive on construction is now offering to pay people for the consequences of that construction.

Borg courts the unions

Alex Borg spent part of his Wednesday at the UĦM Voice of the Workers offices making pledges to unions.

A PN government would nearly double state aid to unions and social partners, raising the cap from €58,000 to €100,000 a year. The funding would be distributed pro rata based on the number of registered members.

The PN is also promising a new fund for registered unions to use for research, policy analysis and developing solutions for the labour market. Borg framed this as wanting unions to be genuine policy partners, and not rubber-stampers.

Nationalist Party leader Alex Borg announced two measures for unions and social partners on Wednesday. Photo: Giulia Magri

A man and his eight dogs

Not all of Wednesday’s news was heavy.

During the Manoel Island conference, Abela revealed that he and his family own eight dogs. Eight! We have no further comment on this except that someone, somewhere, is walking them all.

Eyes peeled for a manifesto

Something to look out for today: Momentum is expected to unveil its full electoral manifesto. It’s titled Manifesto for Just and Beautiful Malta.