Fortina Group illegally occupied land to extend a Sliema lido and even reclaimed territory from the sea without approval from parliament. 

Economy Minister Silvio Schembri on Monday asked a parliamentary committee to sign off on the illegalities, against a €70,000 fine, in order to officially transfer the land to Fortina.

MP Darren Carabott warned that voting in favour of this transfer would signal that it was acceptable to illegally occupy public land and then sanction those actions after the fact.

“What is the point of discussing this in parliament, if the decision to transfer the land has already been taken,” Carabott questioned.

The Opposition duly voted against the proposal presented to the National Audit Office Accounts Committee, triggering a debate in parliament's plenary. 

Ex-Prime Minister Joseph Muscat was engaged as a Fortina consultant shortly after stepping down from government in January 2020. 

Lido concession still pending

In February, the government presented a resolution in parliament to transfer 504 square metres of public land to Fortina.

This includes 356 square metres for the lido itself and a further 148 square metres for a passageway ensuring public access to the shore.

The Opposition raised objections at parliamentary committee stage, insisting that the area, popular among beach-goers, should not be turned into a marina as it would reduce the bathing area and damage the environment.

Schembri told the committee on Monday that following these concerns, the pontoons would be shifted away from the swimmers’ zone.

The minister said the illegal occupation of the lido land would be tackled by the €70,000 fine. Schembri said the fine was backdated to 2020, when the permit for the new lido was first issued by the Planning Authority.

The minister confirmed that all 504 square metres had already been occupied by Fortina, despite not having any title over the land.

Schembri said he “did not know” if the lido has already been opened to the public.

Opposition MP Graham Bencini pointed out that the lido was already operational, having been officially opened in June, as evidenced by social media posts.

Fortina director Michael Zammit Tabona boasted that the lido was "open for business" on June 21. 

The minister argued that the lido was already there, and Fortina had simply “accelerated” the works and expansion into the sea. These works were covered by a Planning Authority permit, Schembri said.

He said the necessary applications had already been made for title on the land to be transferred to Fortina.

Schembri highlights AX Group case

The minister also called out Opposition MPs for seemingly having no objections when a similar case arose in March, when developer Anġlu Xuereb has been occupying the land in Qawra illegally for decades.

That decades-long illegality came to light when MPs were presented with a proposal to remove the Qawra site from a list of public domain areas, paving the way for it to be redeveloped.

Lands Authority CEO Robert Vella confirmed that the Fortina works had already been carried out “illegally”, without legal title.

Vella said Fortina was being “charged” backdated rent for this occupation.

He said charging backdated rent for land found to have been occupied land illegally was an “established practice” that had been used in other cases.

The Lands Authority CEO said he was aware works on the lido had already been concluded while the resolution to transfer title on the land was still pending.

Vella argued that it is not the Lands Authority’s job to carry out enforcement, and it can only enforce such matters by going to court.

He acknowledged that it was “clear from day one” that works on the lido had started without the necessary title.