NGOs demand urgent planning reform as developers exploit appeals loophole

A coalition of environmental and heritage NGOs is demanding the urgent reform of Malta’s planning appeals system, slamming it as “absurd” and “grotesque” for allowing construction to proceed and be completed while appeals are still pending.

The law, which Prime Minister Robert Abela promised to reform more than two years ago, has yet to be changed. Planning Authority CEO Johann Buttigieg had also pledged to introduce reforms within three months, but that deadline has since passed with no visible progress.

The current system empowers the Environment and Planning Review Tribunal (EPRT) to deny requests to halt construction during appeals, effectively enabling developers to complete entire buildings before a court decision is reached. Activists say this undermines the rule of law and renders the appeals process futile.

“The rule of law in Malta is being replaced by the rule of developers,” the organisations said in a joint statement, citing cases in Qala and Sannat where massive developments were declared illegal only after construction was finished.

In Gozo, the Planning Authority is now considering sanctioning a building in Xewkija that was previously ruled illegal by the Court of Appeal in 2023. The developer, known as “il-Ġiegu”, has submitted three separate applications to try to legalise the structure. The applications are set to be decided in late June and early July.

The NGOs condemned the PA’s response to the court rulings, accusing it of not only failing to enforce demolition orders but going a step further by re-issuing permits that had been invalidated by the courts.

They also raised concerns that upcoming legislative changes could rush the appeals process, especially in complex cases involving Environmental Impact Assessments (EIAs).

The statement was endorsed by 12 organisations, including Moviment Graffitti, BirdLife Malta, Din l-Art Ħelwa, Friends of the Earth Malta, Nature Trust Malta, and the Ramblers Association.

They concluded with a direct appeal to the Prime Minister: “Enact this basic and essential reform and stop sidelining our quality of life, undermining our courts, and sacrificing our islands to the forces of greed.”