Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/323754
maltatoday, WEDNESDAY, 4 JUNE 2014 News 4 JAMES DEBONO AN application has been presented to regularise illegal developments in Wied il-Kbir and Wied Ghollieqa following enforcement action by the Malta Environment and Planning Authority last year. The first application refers to a 1,397 square metre illegal farm de- velopment in the Wied Il-Kbir val- ley in Qormi. MEPA had issued an enforcement notice against a two-storey build- ing, which is being used as a stable, an illegal store and the enclosure of an area, which has been roofed with corrugated sheeting. The enforce- ment notice reveals that another area has been enclosed by stone columns and steel pipes. The owner later appealed against the enforce- ment notice. The second application refers to the sanctioning of an illegally de- veloped aviary in Wied Ghollieqa in San Gwann. Last year, MEPA had also issued an enforcement order against this development. The illegal development consisted in the creation of an illegal gate link- ing the illegalities to the main road. It also refers to an illegally con- structed nine-course high store roofed with corrugated steel and the illegal development of an aviary formed by netting and pipes. MEPA presently can't regularise illegal ODZ developments but will be able to do so according to chang- es proposed by the current govern- ment. The removal of the blanket ban on sanctioning ODZ illegalities is found in the document entitled 'For an efficient planning system', which was issued for public consultation in April. The document is a consulta- tion paper on the proposed split of MEPA into separate environment and planning authorities. Article 70 of the Environment and Development Planning Act enacted by the previous government in De- cember 2010 prohibited MEPA from regularising any illegal devel- opments built in ODZ or scheduled areas. The sixth schedule of the Environ- ment and Development Planning Act also bans MEPA from regular- ising any illegal extension to ODZ development. Aerial photos taken in May 2008 were used to determine whether development had been carried out after this date, to assist MEPA in refusing any requests to 'sanction' these extensions. According to the consultation document, the deletion of the sixth schedule will be replaced by the im- position of daily fines: ostensibly, this would mean that daily fines start incurring from the day some- body applies to regularise their il- legal development, to the date that MEPA issues permission. MATTHEW VELLA THE ministry for the economy has declared it will address short- comings identified by the National Audit Office in the way legal firms were being engaged by Mimcol's privatisation unit (PU) on its priva- tisation processes. "The previous administration's methods of procuring legal servic- es left much to be desired and new, more transparent procurement procedures must be followed," the ministry said in a reaction to the NAO report. Mimcol (Malta Investment Man- agement Company), the govern- ment's investment arm, has already appointed a procurement commit- tee headed by the Mimcol deputy chairman, management heads and legal chief. The ministry has also said it will not have the Mimcol chairman and other board members appointed as members of the Privatisation Unit board, contrary to the practice exercised by the previous admin- istration. The PU's role is being separated from Mimcol, as well as having the PU's premises relocated elsewhere. The NAO report investigated the procurement of legal services by the PU between 2008 and 2013, specifically to three legal firms for four privatisation processes. The total cost was of €536,439. Out of a total of €536,439 in le- gal fees, €391,880 went to one legal firm, namely Fenech & Fenech Ad- vocates. This equates to 73% of the total fees disbursed for legal fees during the period under review. Of particular concern was the fact that the engagement of le- gal services for the privatisation of Malta Shipyards Limited was taken following a meeting with fi- nance minister Tonio Fenech and transport minister Austin Gatt (pre-2013). "The point of conten- tion in this regard further inten- sifies when considering that the same agreement with Fenech & Fenech was extended to encom- pass the Ricasoli Tank Cleaning privatisation process and the yacht marinas privatisations." No formal letter of engagement stating the terms of engagement was drawn up and signed by former PU officials, Mimcol and Fenech & Fenech Advocates. However the NAO noted that the urgency of appointing Fenech & Fenech was down to the firm's am- ple experience in maritime law. But the NAO said it was unable to establish whether all legal ex- penses incurred by Mimcol were recovered from the Malta Ship- yards Ltd, saying that Mimcol's chief financial officer – who was also MSL's liquidator – failed to cooperate with the NAO, "a nota- ble shortcoming and a matter of due concern." Another legal firm, Mamo TCV, was also Transport Malta's in- house law firm when it provided legal services for the yacht mari- nas' privatisation As regards the legal assistance provided with respect to Yacht Marinas Privatisation, the chosen legal firm was Mamo TCV, which at the time was Transport Malta's in-house law firm. Although the assigned work was Legal firms took over €536,000 on privatisations MEPA asked to sanction illegal valley developments Political analysts agree Busuttil should ring in the changes Mark Griscti Top and below: Wied Il-Kbir valley in Qormi