Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1531934
2 NEWS maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 29 JANUARY 2025 2 JAMES DEBONO jdebono@mediatoday.com.mt AN investigation by the plan- ning Ombudsman on stables has revealed a loophole that allowed 36 stables to be approved for horses already covered by anoth- er permit. The investigation carried out by the Commissioner for En- vironment and Planning Alan Saliba shows that the Planning Authority (PA) approved 1,022 stables across 298 permits be- tween 2016 and 2024. These stables covered ap- proximately 25,000sq.m of land in outside development zones. The 2014 rural policy estab- lished that stables should be located far away from develop- ment zones. The investigation found that 36 stables were approved for horses that had already been covered by a previous permit, while in two instances, three separate permits were issued for the same horse. Additionally, some permits referenced equine details that were illegible. The findings come after me- dia reports alleged that multi- ple stables were being granted for the same horse, including cases where permits were is- sued for deceased animals amid concerns over unofficial equine ownership transfers. The report identified serious enforcement gaps, with the PA failing to ensure compliance with permit conditions. Saliba recommended that all applica- tions for stables include a list of equines, drawn up by the Vet- erinary Regulation Directorate (VRD), registered under the applicant's name. This will en- sure that the number of stables does not exceed the number of horses owned. Saliba said stable permits should be issued for a maxi- mum of three years, with struc- tures to be dismantled unless renewed, and called for a cen- tralised PA database to prevent multiple permits for the same horse. The Commissioner argued that whether verification should be handled by the Ag- ricultural Advisory Committee or the PA is irrelevant, as the PA is ultimately responsible for ensuring that all information it receives aligns with the princi- ples of SPED. Without proper verification, he added, the re- quirement to submit an equine list becomes meaningless. Ombudsman calls for reduction in stable size The Commissioner acknowl- edged that with about 5,200 equines registered with the VRD since 2016, one would expect to receive such a high number of requests for the de- velopment of stables in ODZ. The Commissioner reviewed all applications and permits is- sued up to August 2024, with a final opinion published on 23 September 2024. The Commissioner called for a reduction in the size of sta- bles to reduce the impact on ODZ land. The investigation found that the PA had approved approx- imately 25,000sq.m of ODZ land for stables based on the current allowance of 25sq.m per stable. The Commissioner recom- mended reducing the limit to 20sq.m for the first three sta- bles and 15sq.m for additional stables, arguing that the exist- ing policy leads to excessive land take-up. Implementing these changes would reduce the overall footprint of stables in ODZ by 20-25%. PA's response Following the report, the PA was granted an additional month to respond and later re- ferred the findings to the Prime Minister in December 2024. The PA agreed to implement stricter enforcement measures, including improved permit monitoring and compliance checks. However, it raised concerns about implementing certain recommendations without re- visions to the Rural Policy or additional collaboration with the VRD. The Commissioner expressed dissatisfaction with the lack of immediate action, particular- ly regarding enforcement and permit issuance criteria. With no concrete response from the PA, and further permits con- tinuing to be issued in appar- ent disregard of the findings, the case has now been referred to the House of Representa- tives under the Ombudsman Act. The Commissioner has called for urgent reforms to prevent further unsustainable devel- opment of stables in ODZ and ensure stricter oversight of equine-related permits. A review of the rural policy which regulates the develop- ment of stables has been pend- ing since 2020. Ombudsman investigation finds multiple stable permits issued for same horses In eight years, the Planning Authority issued permits for 1,022 stables but Environment and Planning Commissioner finds lack of oversight to ensure same horse is not registered under different stables THE unemployment rate for December 2024 stood at 3.0 per cent, at par with the previous month, and decreasing by 0.2 per- centage points when compared to Decem- ber 2023. During December 2024, the number of unemployed persons stood at 10,075, in- creasing by 2.5 per cent from the previ- ous month and decreasing by 1.1 per cent when compared to December 2023. While the 25 to 74 age group was the major con- tributor to the overall level of unemploy- ment, totalling 6,779 persons (67.3 per cent), the number of unemployed youths amounted to 3,296 (32.7 per cent). In December 2024, the unemployment rate for males stood at 3.0 per cent, re- maining stable when compared to No- vember 2024. Meanwhile, the female un- employment rate stood at 3.0 per cent, increasing by 0.1 percentage points when compared to the preceding month. The unemployment rate for persons aged 15 to 24 years (youth unemployment rate) decreased to 10.5 per cent, while the rate for those aged between 25 and 74 years stood at 2.2 per cent, remaining sta- ble when compared to November 2024. Unemployment rate for December 2024 stood at 3.0 per cent