Anti-spring hunting group hopes referendum is held with local council elections

The Coalition for the Abolition of Spring Hunting has welcomed the completion of this first step by the Electoral Commission, in vetting the signatures of the petition.

“It is encouraging to note that the painstaking work, carried out by the Coalition, to rally support and collect signatures, has not proved futile,” a spokesperson for the coalition said.

“Although it is still early to predict the exact month in which the abrogative referendum will be held, it is hoped that it will be in conjunction with the local council elections, to ensure that by combining the costs of both, the country is not subjected to any extra expenses related to the referendum.”

Electoral Commissioner Joseph Church told MaltaToday that the signatures have been verified and in the coming days the Constitutional Court is expected to publish a notice confirming that enough signatures have been collected. 41,494 valid signatures were presented to the court.

The Constitutional Court will officially request a referendum once the three-month period in which objections can be filed in court is over. If no objections are upheld by court, the referendum is expected to be held in March 2015.