The government’s promise to put an end to construction if an appeal is pending has been stalled for over a year, as stakeholders remain unconvinced of the government’s proposals.
“Discussions are still ongoing with stakeholders,” the planning ministry told Times of Malta when it asked for an update.
Malta Developers Association (MDA) and Kamra tal-Periti (KTP) have expressed their support for the reform during discussions, but only if the timeframes of Planning and Review Tribunal decisions and court judgments are shortened.
Sources said a legal draft verbally presented to some stakeholders established a time limit of over a year for the appeal process to be concluded, as well as other changes to the procedure that were not specified.
Meanwhile, Moviment Graffitti’s Andre Callus said that NGOs that have supported this reform have been left in the dark and have not had a single meeting with the government in the past year.
The first time this planning reform was mentioned was during Prime Minister Robert Abela’s Workers Day speech in 2023.
Then, in September 2023, cabinet approved a reform to the planning appeals process that would halt works until an appeal is exhausted. A month later, the government opened public consultation which lasted until November 3, 2023.
Stakeholders still unhappy
MDA’s president Michael Stivala said a lot of meetings had been held with the government to discuss the reform, the most recent one being last week.
He said the MDA’s main issue has to do with the lengthy, “antiquated and complicated” appeals process.
“If you promise to shorten [the appeal process], then we’ll be interested,” Stivala said.
In its talks with the government, the MDA has suggested digitalising the notice-of-hearing system and having all testimonies given in one sitting rather than in multiple sittings, to increase efficiency.
If the reform were to be implemented without changing this system, Stivala fears there would be an increase in abuse of the appeal system.
KTP last met with the government to discuss this reform in November, its president Andre Pizzuto said.
He said the KTP has called for a strict three-month time limit for the appeals process, both at the tribunal and in court.
If the tribunals cannot cope, then there should be more of them, Pizzuto suggested.
He added that in the interests of saving time, KTP has also suggested presenting evidence through affidavits and depositions, rather than during the tribunal hearing.
Graffitti’s Callus accused Abela of not keeping to his word and completely side-lining NGOs in these discussions.
“This was really rude behaviour from the prime minister. He was completely dishonest,” Callus said.
Since the consultation period ended, Abela has not met with any NGOs to discuss the reform, he said.
Callus highlighted that in September, Planning Minister Clint Camilleri had said he was going to send them a draft of the reform, but Graffitti never received it.
“I am not saying that there shouldn’t be a time limit, but it has to be fair. You can’t have us carry out an appeal in four months,” Callus said.
Currently, if someone wishes to contest a decision taken by the PA about a proposed development, the development can still start even though it may subject to appeal.
The appeal must first be heard by a tribunal and, if its decision is deemed unsatisfactory, it can be taken to court. Either the tribunal or the court may decide against the permit – yet development may already be underway.
The review tribunal could opt to suspend works if the appellants request it, however it rarely decides to do so.
This situation has led to controversial developments being shot down by a court later, such as in the case of two large pools built by mega-developer Joseph Portelli outside Qala’s development boundaries. In March 2024, a court revoked an earlier tribunal decision to sanction them after they had already been constructed.