Prime Minister Robert Abela has ruled out reviewing the country’s local plans, saying this would cause people to suffer injustice. He has also excluded purchasing Ħondoq ir-Rummien from its private owners.

Abela told Times of Malta in an interview that the local plans had last been changed by a Nationalist administration in 2006 and changing them again would impinge on people’s property rights and cause injustices.

“I believe they shouldn’t be changed because it creates great injustice for people,” he said, adding that people can “build intelligently and in an aesthetically pleasing way” when asked whether developers building high apartment blocks was going to remain a common sight.

“Nobody, not even the Opposition, has contested the local plans. If we had to do that, we would create great uncertainty in the country. Property value would change drastically causing huge, dangerous uncertainty,” he said.

“We cannot revoke people’s property rights. But there are other ways around it, including incentivising people to buy old properties, investing €700 million more in open spaces and improve regulations on the aesthetic beauty and preservation of buildings,” he added.

Developer Sandro Chetcuti last week emphasised the need for better planning in the construction sector, saying local plans needed to be revised if this was necessary.

Addressing a KPMG property conference, Chetcuti warned that without a long-term sustainable plan, progress may actually turn into regress.

“There needs to be an equilibrium. There is a need for balance. If the local plans need to be revised, if certain policies need to be changed, let us take the necessary decisions,” Chetcuti said.

Local plans dictate what forms of development are allowed in different geographical areas. They were most recently updated in 2006. The government said in 2013 that it was in the process of revising them. It has so far failed to do so. 

Chetcuti served as chairman of the Malta Developers Association between 2014 and 2021. He now chairs a government property foundation.

Ħondoq ir-Rummien

Turning to Ħondoq ir-Rummien and whether the government planned to buy the land from the private owners who were asking for €17 million, Abela replied: “No we won’t pay that amount but it will remain preserved.”

Asked how the government planned to preserve it without buying the land, Abela once again replied: “It will remain preserved.”

Last Thursday, a planning tribunal shot down developers’ appeal to forge ahead with development in Ħondoq bay, closing the chapter on a 20-year saga.

Gozo Prestige Hotels, the owners of a massive tract of land in Ħondoq, have long had plans to develop the 103,000 square metre site, which include a hotel, parking facilities, 25 villas, 60 apartments and 200 multi-owner properties.

In 2016, the Planning Authority reached a unanimous decision not to grant the permit, however, shortly after developers filed an appeal, claiming that their right to a fair hearing had been breached.

The Environmental and Planning Review Tribunal voted against the appeal.