No consultation on planning law changes to 'prevent land speculation’: PA boss

One of the reasons why there was no public consultation process on sweeping revisions to planning laws was to “prevent speculation,” Planning Authority CEO Johann Buttigieg claimed on Monday.

Addressing a press briefing alongside planning minister Clint Camilleri, Buttigieg said the proposals were presented directly to parliament in a bid to prevent speculators from profiting from them.

One of the proposals will allow owners of illegal developments to pay the PA to regularise them, thus significantly increasing the value of those previously illegal properties.

That proposal, exclusively revealed by The Sunday Times of Malta, is separate from two bills tabled in parliament late last week which seek to overhaul planning appeals and the PA's broader powers. 

Buttigieg however specifically mentioned the regularisation proposal as one of the reasons why the draft laws were kept hushed.

The proposals listed in the two bills, which include a narrowing of appeal windows and a limiting of appeal court powers, sparked outcry from NGOs and the public, as well as accusations that the government was trying to rush through the new laws prior to parliament’s summer recess.

Meetings held with MDA, KTP

Minister Camilleri, however, said the proposals will be adequately discussed in parliament, and there is no obligation to pass the new laws before parliament's summer break. 

While discussions about the proposals had been held with the powerful construction lobby (MDA) and the Kamra tal-Periti, Camilleri confirmed he had held no formal meetings about them with NGOs.

'Adjustments' possible

Camilleri did not rule out further "adjustments" to the proposals, including the timeframes in which an appeal against a permit can be filed.  Labour party president Alex Sciberras was among those pushing over the weekend for changes to the proposals. 

The appeals window for tribunal decisions has been narrowed to 20 days, down from 30.

Camilleri appeared to acknowledge concerns that the proposed timeframes could place a burden on NGOs, who may not be able to mobilise the necessary resources to file an appeal within 20 days. 

Prime Minister Robert Abela appeared to dismiss such concerns on Sunday, saying a good appeal can be written in a day. 

Camilleri said the government had sought to address a planning system that had been designed many years ago.

Protecting streetscapes

He said the proposals will empower the PA to give more weight to the context of a particular streetscape when deciding on planning applications. The minister said this will help safeguard zones like those with terraced houses set over two floors.

According to the proposals, the authority will be empowered to deviate from policies based on "spatial, architectural, or contextual considerations".

Critics argue this will give the PA new powers to override established policies, like local plans - big-picture documents approved by parliament which establish land uses and which currently supersede other planning policies.

Another contentious proposal will give the planning minister the power to revive expired permits.

Camilleri said this was introduced primarily to address an “anomaly” that led to certain permits that expired during an eight-month window in 2023 not benefitting from various permit extensions given by the government in recent years.

“We are doing it with good intentions,” Camilleri insisted.

On amendments to the appeals process, Camilleri said the starting point was to prevent situations whereby developers start construction while appeals are still under way, only for the permit to be declared illegal four or five years down the line.

Under the new proposals, works on a site can be suspended for a maximum of ten months pending appeals before the Environment and Planning Review Tribunal and appeals court.

If a court were to send back a permit to the EPRT and further appeals are subsequently filed, the 10-month window will again restart.

Camilleri said these timeframes had been established after speaking to individuals who work within the EPRT.