Court issues temporary stop on PBS on Budget ads PN says are partisan

Madam Justice Miriam Hayman provisionally upheld a Nationalist Party request  to stop PBS from broadcasting Budget ads which the PN insists are constitutionally illegal.

The court ordered the Broadcasting Authority to ensure that the national broadcaster does not broadcast any ads which, under the BA Act, would be of a partisan political nature, in accordance with its obligations under the law.

The hearing on the injunction will continue on Wednesday.

The Nationalist Party filked the requets against the Public Broadcasting Services and the Broadcasting Authority, claming partisan government propaganda spots had been illegally aired on the national broadcaster.

PN Secretary-General Michael Piccinino, complained to the Broadcasting Authority on Sunday evening claming partisan government propaganda spots had been aired on the public broadcasting station. 

“Not only does this spot include partisan content, but it also features Prime Minister and Labour Leader Robert Abela himself, creating a political imbalance on the eve of the national Budget, and potentially in the coming days. This spot has been broadcast several times on TVM, including during and after the news,” Piccinino said.

The PN said the law bans political propaganda of this nature from being broadcast in this manner unless it forms part of a schedule authorised by the Broadcasting Authority. “Such spots are otherwise illegal… if this broadcast – which causes prejudice against the Opposition – is not stopped immediately and no action is taken by the Broadcasting Authority by tomorrow, the Opposition will have no choice but to seek further legal action to halt this blatant abuse.”

The PN has demanded effective redress and assurance that the Opposition is given equal airtime as the Government to discuss the 2025 Budget, including the option to broadcast similar political spots.

In the judicial protest, the PN said that the continued airing of such spots on PBS created a “strong chilling effect against the Nationalist Party, with the result that any delay in decision-making offers no just, appropriate, effective, or efficient remedy.”

The PN said it had suffered a violation of its fundamental rights and other rights arising from the Constitution. “PBS has shown no vigilance, as it is already broadcasting partisan political advertisements, and the Authority provides no guarantee to the applicants to ensure the obligations of the broadcaster, are fulfilled immediately.”

“Should PBS continue broadcasting partisan political spots, and should the Broadcasting Authority fail to take necessary actions to ensure the applicants’ rights according to Article 119 of the Constitution and Chapter 350 of the Laws of Malta, the applicants would suffer yet again a serious prejudice against a fair, adequate, effective, and efficient remedy, with a chilling effect on the right to freedom of expression, and on the right to express their voice in a balanced manner.”

The PN asked the courts to order PBS to cease broadcasting the spots and to instruct the Broadcasting Authority to be prohibited from allowing PBS to broadcast the spots or any other related to the Budget with a “partisan political nature”.