Tables and chairs on public spaces must not become a right, NGOs insist

NGOs and resident networks must be included as recognised stakeholders in shaping policy on tables and chairs outside catering establishments, a group of NGOs said on Tuesday.

The groups, including Flimkien għal Ambjent Aħjar, Marsascala Residents Network, Moviment Graffitti, Residenti Beltin, Residenti Mellieħin and Sliema Residents Association, said that the government’s commissioning of a private firm to draw up master plans to “reallocate” tables and chairs, risked making private commercial use of public space an automatic right.

The government's announcement followed a call by the Ombudsman for the government to take immediate action to address the growing obstruction of public pavements, primarily by catering establishments. 

"What was once an exception has gradually become an entitlement. A limited number of tables and chairs has evolved into a situation in which any bar, restaurant or takeaway is assumed to have the right to occupy public pavements with platforms, furniture, heaters, restaurant equipment, barriers, signage and musicians, regardless of context or impact. This shift has sneaked in quietly, without democratic consent, and almost always at the expense of pedestrians and residents," the NGOs said.

"The suggestion that the State should now spend significant public funds to plan how private operators can more efficiently occupy public land is not only unfair, but insulting to the public and deeply misguided. The issue is not the absence of master planning. It is the acceptance of a concept that treats public space as something that businessmen have a right to take over, irrespective of heritage, social needs and accessibility in emergencies."

The groups said any serious discussion about urban planning, heritage protection, sustainability, and quality of life would be fundamentally incomplete if it excludes NGOs and organised resident networks. 

"Public pavements, roads and squares are not residual areas waiting to be filled, nor are they compensation for commercial activity. They exist first and foremost to serve the public, allowing people to congregate or to move freely, safely and with dignity."

"Any approach that begins from the premise that tables and chairs must be accommodated rather than questioned, undermines this basic principle."

"If any reform is to be credible, it must begin by reaffirming a fundamental truth: public space is public. It must be protected as such, not redesigned to absorb continuous encroachment. This requires political courage, clear limits and meaningful engagement with residents, local councils and civil society, not further expenditure to dress up an already flawed premise,"  the groups said.