Nationalist leadership contender Adrian Delia said this morning that his co-option to parliament should he become PN leader would not be an issue, but he did not name any MP who could give up his seat for him.

He gave the assurance during a news conference in Sliema, in which he outlined his vision in favour of sustainable development, insisting once again on long-term planning. 

Questions on Dr Delia’s co-option to parliament were raised from the outset of his campaign, but the issue still lingers at this late stage of the campaign. 

Dr Delia said the matter was no longer an issue, but he said he did not consider it wise to name any MP who was willing to give up his seat at this stage of the campaign. 

In his address, Dr Delia said overdevelopment was stifling the quality of life and his vision was to launch a comprehensive study to identify the country’s needs for the next 30 to 50 years.

“We cannot keep building schools, hospitals, apartments or properties for social housing if we do not take stock of the situation to identify what the country really needs,” he said.

Dr Delia also questioned the decision to split the planning watchdog into two separate entities, saying the Environment and Resources Authority seemed to be playing second fiddle to the Planning Authority in major decisions.

Malta needs more open spaces and “green lungs” in built-up areas, he added.

He also called for a holistic solution to solve the traffic problem, saying that country was in “permanent congestion”.

“We need to start thinking outside the box and not just in terms of road upgrades,” he remarked.

Apart from better parking facilities, there needed to be greater efforts towards car-pooling, better services in the community to avoid unnecessary commuting to other parts of the island, and staggered timing of various activities to have better distribution.