The Kamra tal-Periti has welcomed the publication of a list of licensed masons on the website of the Building Regulation Office (BRO).

It said it expected the BRO not to permit works to continue on any site where masons were found not to be on the list.

The chamber said it had been asking for the publication of such a list for many years, and each time it was told that this could not be published for reasons of data protection.

The law states that one cannot exercise the trade of a mason without a licence. This was required to give assurance to the owner of the site, the architect in charge of the project, and society that such person was qualified to carry out this trade and had received the appropriate training.

The chamber said that the responsibilities laid down in the law were very clear. This said that if any mason, through unskillfulness, imprudence or carelessness, caused any injury to a person or damaged property, a magistrate could interdict him from the exercise of his trade for any time and withdraw his licence.

The Civil Code, the chamber said, placed the onus for the structural integrity jointly on the architect and the contractor. The Building Regulation Act also placed the obligation on the BRO to issue the licences and register masons, fire consultants, other consultants in the building industry, building contractors and tradespersons.

An extraordinary general meeting of the chamber two days ago demanded that such licencing and registration was implemented.

It reiterated its willingness to support the government in setting up systems for the registration and licensing of contractors in accordance with the BRO’s obligations.

The meeting followed the issuing of proposals by the Infrastructure Ministry, which include stricter procedures and regulations for architects and contractors, and increased fines of up to €50,000. The draft legal notice is intended to safeguard properties from damage caused by adjacent excavation and construction works, as “piecemeal and ill-thought”. 

It comes after three buildings - two in Guardamangia and another in Mellieħa - were destroyed or severely damaged by nearby works.

In a draft position published a few days ago, the Chamber lambasted the draft legal notice.

The list of registered masons can be seen in the pdf link below.