Construction works will not be allowed to start while appeal processes are still pending, Prime Minister Robert Abela announced.

This means that works can only begin after permit contestations have been concluded; this is currently not legally binding due to an anomaly in the planning law. 

Abela made this announcement on social media where he said that the “cabinet approves a fairer system for planning appeals”.

“Measure will suspend the commencement of construction works until the appeal process is exhausted. The public is encouraged to have their say in the upcoming consultation process.”

This legal amendment was hinted at during a Labour mass meeting in May where Abela asked whether it “makes sense for the planning law to allow construction work to start when the permit is still being contested before the tribunal or law courts”, Times of Malta reported.

Such a legal abnormality allows contractors to go ahead with projects while appeals against them are still pending. 

An explanation of this anomaly can be found here on Lovin Malta’s Planning Web.

Urgent calls to reform the construction sector have been regularly occurring since the deaths of JeanPaul Sofia and Miriam Pace at the hands of excavation and construction works.

A public inquiry into the former tragedy is expected to reveal systematic problems within the industry that enable such incidents to frequently occur.

The Abela administration also recently declared new licensing requirements for construction workers and new regulations to oversee contractors.

Do you think that this is a step in the right direction?