PN leader says new Chief Justice appointment cannot be delayed

The appointment of a new Chief Justice cannot be delayed, opposition leader Alex Borg has said.

"We cannot keep sitting in limbo without a new Chief Justice in post. It is a matter that is imminent, and we need to sort it out because in the end, without it, we cannot move forward," Borg said in an interview on Campus FM on Saturday morning.

Borg said he had submitted four names to the Prime Minister for consideration but had kept their identities private to respect judicial independence and the role of the judges concerned.

He said he had not sought to impose a particular choice on the Prime Minister and remained willing to continue discussions on the appointment.

The current Chief Justice's term has been extended rather than replaced, with Borg saying appointing a new Chief Justice had become imminent.

The PN leader also raised questions about criminal cases that had not been pursued, saying people should know whether this had happened because of decisions taken by those responsible or because of interference.

“There are serious cases in our country that if they haven't been pursued, people need to know if they weren't pursued by choice or because there was interference,” he said.

Borg said some cases had remained on the shelf and that some could no longer be pursued because they had become prescribed.

The PN leader also reflected on his first year in the post, saying he had learnt a lot and matured both politically and personally.

He said the PN needed to regain people's confidence in politics and understand why some voters had chosen other parties or had not voted.

Borg said young people he had spoken to were leaving Malta because of concerns about their quality of life and the mental stress they felt, rather than because they did not love the country.

On the Daphne Caruana Galizia assassination public inquiry, Borg said the government needed to implement its recommendations, arguing that the country had waited too long for the necessary reforms.

“We cannot keep playing around with this the way the government is playing with it,” he said.

Borg also said the PN wanted stronger protections for journalists and argued that journalists and the media should have a role in regulating their own profession.

“The worst thing that could happen is if warrant decisions end up in the hands of a government agency,” he said.

On the party's finances, Borg said the PN had broken even during the general election campaign for the first time in its history, meaning the campaign had not added further debt.

He said the party had started making better commercial use of dormant assets to help reduce its debt, including a large PN club in Rabat that had not previously been rented out.

Turning to planning, Borg criticised the Planning Authority, saying it was issuing permits rather than properly planning the country's development.

“We have a permitting authority that issues permit like pastries. There is no actual planning happening,” he said. He also argued for stronger planning rules and better standards for the appearance and design of buildings.

On road safety, Borg said there was no clear plan for dealing with traffic and argued that Malta needed a credible alternative to the private car.

He said an efficient mass-transport system was needed as part of that alternative.