Magic Kiosk, a conspicuous if controversial Sliema landmark, is set to be demolished in January after its lease expired yesterday and was not extended by the Land Department.

The tenant, Joseph Pace, is challenging the decision and asking the government to talk things over with him in order to find an amicable solution.

Mr Pace has filed a court application claiming he is being discriminated against because of his political beliefs.

He is willing to help fund a government project to turn the place into a public square as long as he is allowed to retain a small kiosk, which is being included in the government's latest plans.

But the authorities are moving ahead. The Malta Environment and Planning Authority this week approved an application to remove the sprawling turquoise aquarium-like restaurant which, along with other structures, occupies a large part of St Anne Square on the Ferries.

In July, the Land Department filed a judicial protest over the lease. The land on which the kiosk is built had been leased in two parts and the department pointed out that one of the contracts had expired in 2004 but Mr Pace had failed to evacuate the area.

This time, the government gave Mr Pace advance notice before the second contract expired.

The decision is an initiative of Resources Minister George Pullicino, who has been working on it since 2005, and Parliamentary Secretary for Land Jason Azzopardi.

The government's aim is to clear the square of the kiosk and restore it to its former glory, complementing the recent repaving of Tower Road that has embellished the area.