Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1132126
€1.50 Court overstepped its remit when it voided DB Group's Pembroke project permit - legal experts PAGE 5 INTERVIEW PAGES 10 & 11 PAUL COCKS THE DB Group will have to re- apply and go through the entire Planning Authority's applica- tion and adjuducation process for the €300 million City Cen- tre project in Pembroke, after the appeals court yesterday ruled the original application null and void. Judge Mark Chetcuti ruled that planning board member Matthew Pace had a confl ict of interest because of his in- volevement in real estate when he voted on the project. Senior government legal sources told Business Today that DB Group will, technical- ly speaking, have to re-apply from scratch and go through the entire evaluation process again, pushing the project - and the group's strategy and work at the Pembroke site - back at least six months. ey said that the Courts had overstepped their remit since the court's decision aff ected planning policy, in that it de- clared the original permit null and void and not the decision of the tribunal. e same sources said it was "highly likely" Pace - co-owner in the Swieqi branch of proper- ty agents Remax, which was ad- vertising apartments in the DB project - would be resigning his position on the PA board. e court's decision could also open a veritable Pandora's box if it is found to aff tect all the decisions taken by the PA board when Pace was present and which could also point to a confl ict of interest with his co-ownership of the Swieqi Re- max branch. But the confl ict of interest of a board member, the sourc- es said, should not lead to the applicant having to go through the whole application and ad- judication process again. ey did not see how - or why - when a PA board member was found to have a confl ict of interest, it was the applicant that was made to pay for it. e only advantage the DB Group has is that all the stud- ies it had commissioned for the project had been endorsed and refl ect current policy. e court was deciding on an appeal fi led by local coun- cils and several environment groups against a decision by the Environment and Planning Review Tribunal that had ruled in favour of the permit. APS chief warns country's reputation could trigger further correspondent banks' de-risking Hili Ventures CEO Melo Hili on the group's current and future endeavours in Malta and offshore PAGE 3 THURSDAY 20 JUNE 2019 • ISSUE 13 WWW.BUSINESSTODAY.COM.MT The PA board approved the City Centre project in September 2018