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6 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 27 MARCH 2022 OPINION 2 maltatoday EXECUTIVE EDITOR KURT SANSONE ksansone@mediatoday.com.mt Letters to the Editor, MaltaToday, Vjal ir-Rihan, San Gwann SGN 9016 E-mail: dailynews@mediatoday.com.mt Letters must be concise, no pen names accepted, include full name and address maltatoday | SUNDAY • 18 FEBRUARY 2024 After the honeymoon, a deep dive into planning policies Editorial NEW buildings in Gozo will have to use Maltese stone for their facades in a policy change piloted by Gozo and Planning Minister Clint Camilleri. The new policy also applies to the backside of buildings where these are overlooking ODZ zones. The idea behind such a policy is to have visually pleasing buildings that are more in tune with the traditional character of Gozo's villages. It is a good move that is very much in synch with the strategy adopted by the Gozo Regional Development Au- thority called 'Gozo: An island of villages'. But as much as aesthetics play an important role in creating pleasant urban environments, such a new policy only addresses the 'ugliness' aspect of the building frenzy. It is a first step and this leader hopes it will not be the last. In his interview with this newspaper last Sun- day, Camilleri was non-committal on several key policy changes that would truly make a difference to the way development takes place not just in Gozo but also in Malta. To be fair, Camilleri has only been responsible for the planning portfolio since the second week of January and is still coming to grips with the situation. But he should be using his 100-day hon- eymoon period to get up to speed with pending issues that have remained so for years, not least the rural development policy (RDP). The RDP was introduced in 2014 to provide clarity on what type of developments could take place in ODZ areas. It was intended to help farm- ers by providing the planning parameters for the development of agricultural stores, stables, reser- voirs and residences attached to farms. However, the policy also allowed ODZ land owners to redevelop long-abandoned buildings into residential property if they could prove that someone lived there many years ago. This policy loophole saw piles of stone being turned into villas because the owner managed to dig out some old electoral register showing that somebody lived there 100 years ago. The government had committed itself to change this loophole. A draft policy had also been pub- lished but three planning ministers later, the RDP remains unchanged. Amending the RDP should be a top priority for Camilleri within the next 12 months. The second issue he should be focussing on is amendments to the local plans so that unspoilt open spaces can be protected from development. Camilleri will shortly be signing on the changes to the Gozo Local Plan so that no development will be allowed at Ħondoq ir-Rummien in Qala. It will represent a crowning moment for Qala May- or Paul Buttigieg, who has been campaigning for more than two decades to save Ħondoq from ruin. But the same legal argument government is using to reverse past decisions that had allowed some form of development to take place at Ħon- doq should be applied to other areas that were added to the development zones in 2006. The government should do a stocktake of those areas that were added to the development zones in the rationalisation exercise of 2006 to determine which of those areas today warrant protection be- cause of their unspoilt character, their agricultural use, or their importance as an open space within an intense urban environment. Those areas falling within these categories and on which no type of planning or zoning permit has been issued, should be protected through a change in the local plans. After all, in Ħondoq, the Planning Authority has argued that the land owners who were prospect- ing the development of a luxury village and yacht marina could not claim pretended rights since no permit had ever been issued. The underlying ar- gument is that designating an area as developable in the local plan does not automatically give land owners pretended rights. This leader believes the same principle should be adopted elsewhere. Camilleri should not shy away from taking a deep dive into other policy areas to determine how best to change them in a bid to safeguard the environment, historical landscapes and allow peo- ple the space to enjoy community life within their localities. The minister is right in saying that everyone is against development up to the point that it does not concern them. But blaming people for wanting to better their lives through the redevelopment of the house their parents may have bequeathed them will not solve anything. This is why policies exist. Policies should pro- vide clarity and equity. Stopping development outright is not only unrealisable but undesirable. Policies must ensure that where development takes place, what people develop and how it is built are premised on a sustainable model that keeps in mind Malta's limited space, the country's needs and the wellbeing of communities. Quote of the Week "Farmers gone? Eat your money." A placard carried by protesting farmers on Thursday as they voiced their concerns over cheap imports that are not subject to the same stringent rules as they are and lack of support in the face of rising expenses and tough green rules. MaltaToday 10 years ago 16 February 2014 State moves in to take control of local wardens THE running of Malta's local enforcement sys- tem has become too costly to keep up with the expectations of the two private companies which provide Malta's and Gozo's 44 local councils with wardens, CCTV cam- eras, and speed cameras, and the only way it can survive is to issue more tickets and col- lect more fines. But Labour seems to be living up to a warn- ing sounded by Joseph Muscat in 2011 that the "sub- sidised racket" of local enforcement would longer be tolerated under a new govern- ment. "Yesterday, parliamentary secretary for local government José Herrera unveiled plans for a new centralised unit to take over the manning of local wardens. Herrera has pledged a 30% reduction in costs - a reduction that industry insiders de- duce can only be achieved by cutting out the private sector. But the parliamentary secretary said that today's system was built on the misleading as- sumption that it should make money for local councils when in reality, uncollected fines and a decline in contraventions and speed- ing offences being committed, has rendered the system unsustainble to run. Herrera's solution will be to turn the LES in- to a national unit of wardens serving councils, rather than the private operators taking over 70% of the total fines issued over the years. Labour taking on 'subsidised racket Malta's local warden system is in the pro- cess of being reformed, 14 years after it was first introduced – but the jury is out on what government's plans for a centralised unit means for people like Kenneth De Martino, whose Guard & Warden Service runs the gamut of local enforcement services, deploy- ing wardens to the coun- cils, monitoring CCTV systems and also processing speed camera fines. ...