The Nationalist Party has called for proposed reforms to media laws to be opened up to public consultation before they are presented to parliament. 

In a statement on Saturday, PN MP Karol Aquilina said that the proposals, unveiled by Justice Minister Jonathan Attard earlier this week, contained several inconsistencies and would continue to allow the government to restrict access to information. 

The proposals seek to include mention of the media and the free press in Malta’s constitution, revise laws to bettter protect journalists from crime and the threat of vexatious lawsuits and set up a ‘safety committee’ made up of the police commissioner, army chief and security service head to discuss protecting journalists. 

Attard said the reforms were drafted following recommendations made by a ‘committee of experts’ appointed by the government to advise on how to reform media laws. He said 86 per cent of the committee’s proposals had been taken on board.

But the plans have drawn a tepid response so far, with many saying they will do little to protect local media or allow it to better do its work. 

Chief among critics’ concerns is the government’s failure to include anything that would uphold the media’s right to information. 

A group of journalists and media experts calling themselves the Media Reform Initiative said on Friday that the draft legislation “ignores international standards” and were “weak in substance”. 

The draft laws’ failure to oblige public authorities to provide information was especially damning, they said, given the government’s apparent policy to favour non-disclosure. 

In his statement on Saturday, PN MP Aquilina said that public consultation was a valuable tool which the government should make use of when reforming local media laws. 

“The Opposition will insist that no debate or  parliamentary procedure should get under way before an effective public consultation about the media sector is carried out,” he said. 

Attard has argued that the government has consulted with a variety of stakeholders, including its committee of experts, before making the draft legislation public.