Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1546437
5 gozotoday | FRIDAY • 4 SEPTEMBER 2026 NEWS Gozitan activist Luke Said raises alarm over development in Gozo GOZITAN activist and PN candidate and activ- ist Luke Said has raised concerns over the scale of development approved in Gozo. Said has claimed that 15,017 new residences have been approved on the island between 2012 and 2026. In a post on social media, Said said the figure would represent a 60% increase in Gozo's housing if all the approved residences were eventually built. Said compared the de- velopment approvals with population growth, point- ing out that Gozo's popu- lation had increased from around 31,400 in 2013 to 41,800 in 2025, an increase of roughly 33%. "The problem is not growth. The problem is growth without planning," Said said. He said the consequences of poor planning were being felt particularly by vulner- able people, including elderly residents and those suffering from health problems. Said also turned his at- tention to development outside the development zone, questioning why applications for con- struction on ODZ land continue to be approved while substantial space remains available within development zones. He highlighted plan- ning application PA/05649/26, which he said concerns a new house located entirely on ODZ land overlook- ing the Ramla Valley. According to Said, the site had previously been the subject of an application for a large garage, with around two- thirds of the proposed develop- ment falling within ODZ. He claimed that the earlier proposal was subsequently al- tered so that it fell within the development zone and was eventually approved, before a new application was submitted for a house entirely on ODZ land. "Seriously… do we really have no more spaces where we can build within the development zone?" Said asked. The Gozitan activist argued that Gozo's development should be accompanied by in- vestment in infrastructure and stronger planning policies. "Gozo needs proper infrastruc- ture. Gozo needs proper plan- ning…ODZ means ODZ." Gozitan activist Luke Said Goztian activst Luke Said