MIDI insists Manoel Island project will proceed despite the petition

MIDI has vowed to forge ahead with its plans for Manoel Island after a petition to turn the island into a national park closed with over 29,000 signatures, saying it has a “right and an obligation” to develop in line with the area’s master plan.

When asked whether the company was inclined to rethink its plans in light of the petition, a MIDI spokesperson told Times of Malta that the project’s development footprint had already been drastically downsized.

“The master plan has already been revised significantly in view of the archaeological finds and after consultation with the Gżira local council,” the spokesperson said. 

“The extent of the new development has been reduced by more than 40% and the revised master plan includes significant public open spaces together with guarantees for the public that ensure that these spaces and the popular swimming zones remain accessible at all times.”

The concession agreement means “MIDI has the right and an obligation to develop Manoel Island within the parameters of the approved master plan”, the spokesperson said, adding that heritage buildings and public open spaces “occupy more than 80% of MIDI’s concession”.

Like MIDI, the Post Għalina coalition, which authored and led the petition, also says it has no plan to fold, describing 29,000 signatures as “just the tip of the iceberg”, although it has yet to clearly mark its next steps.

In comments to Times of Malta, the coalition argued that its case “is based squarely on a solid logical and legal case”, namely that MIDI will be unable to meet its contractual obligations to substantially complete the project by a March 2026 deadline.

MIDI has frequently disputed this deadline, arguing that the contract effectively stops the project’s clock in cases of delays out of its control, such as archaeological finds and red tape.

The coalition reiterated its calls for the government to renegotiate the concession, arguing that, for the most part, “MIDI’s delays cannot be deemed to have been outside their control. As a result, any extension they may be contractually due is insufficient to substantially complete their project”.

Resistance to the project among civil society remains strong, with the petition endorsed by over 40 organisations but the proposal to turn the area into a national park has received relatively little political support.

Both Robert Abela and Bernard Grech have brushed aside the petition, arguing that the terms of a concession agreement signed in 2000 must be respected. 

But several PN MPs have called on the party to take a more nuanced stance, expressing their reservations over the project. 

Labour MPs have been more reticent, although Alfred Sant and Evarist Bartolo, both prominent Labour figures at the time of the concession, have publicly backed the petition. Meanwhile, Momentum yesterday called for a “transparent” parliamentary debate on the Manoel Island contract after slamming the PN leader’s comments on the petition, accusing him of aligning with the government.

In a statement, Momentum chairperson Arnold Cassola reiterated the party’s “full support” for the petition to return Manoel Island to the public as a national park.

“The very least the opposition leader could have done is welcome a debate in parliament. This is not the kind of leadership expected from someone who claims to ‘genuinely care about everyone’s opinion’, let alone from a leader of the opposition, who now appears more interested in opposing the public than holding the government to account,” Cassola said.