Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/571192
www.maltatoday.com.mt wednesday edition wednesday • 16 September 2015 • iSSue 433 • publiShed every wedneSday and Sunday €1.00 EDITORIAL PAGE 10 Newspaper post PAGE 5 Court upholds Archbishop's injunction request against Carmelite order Curia opposing proposed supermarket on the grounds of the Carmelite order's Balluta priory MAt thEw AGius A court has upheld an application for a warrant of prohibitory injunc- tion filed by the Archbishop against the Carmelite order, preventing the order from granting permission for part of the grounds of its Balluta priory to be developed into a super- market. The Archbishop's Curia had asked the courts to issue the injunction to prevent the Carmelites and the de- veloper from building the proposed supermarket, car park and offices in the convent grounds. In the application for the in- junction, which was filed late last month, Dr Michelle Tabone, the Archbishop's bursar, claimed that she had come to know that in 2011, Fr Alexander Vella and Fr Charles Mallia had entered into a private agreement, leasing part of the con- vent grounds to developer John Cil- ia who happens to be the brother of Fr Anthony Cilia, who was the Car- melite provincial at the time. The current leadership of the Carmelite order is also challeng- ing the legal validity of this agree- ment in court and requesting the rescission of the concession grant- ed by Frs Vella and Mallia, on the grounds of a "violation of express resolutive conditions of the original contract," which had been entered into in 1890. In his decree upholding the re- quest, Mr Justice Giannino Caru- ana Demajo held that there was a prima facie right meriting protec- tion and granted the injunction un- til a final judgment on the issue is handed down. Last month, Scicluna publicly said that he was "dead set against" the development application to build an underground three-storey car park, a supermarket at ground floor level and overlying offices on the first floor to be located in the priory's garden. European Commission to take Malta to EU court over refusal to end bird trapping JurGEn BAlzAn The european Commission is referring Malta to the european Court of Justice over its refusal to stop bird trapping, a practice that the Labour government reintro- duced after it was phased out and banned in 2009. This is the second time Malta is being taken to the eU Court for flouting environmental laws: the first time was over its insistence on opening the spring hunting season. A source privy to Malta's rela- tions on hunting and trapping with the european Commission said it was expected that the government would ignore the warning to end the trapping season given from Brussels earlier this year. "Malta contested the Commis- sion's analysis," the source said, referring to the reasoned opinion sent by the Commission back in May 2015. Since Malta has not committed to end trapping, it will have to answer to the Commission at the eU's Court of Justice. Malta was first informed in a letter of formal notice in Octo- ber 2014 that its trapping sea- son, which allows the trapping of seven species of wild finches, was breaching eU rules. Trapping of finches is prohibited by the eU although member states may derogate from the ban if no other satisfactory solution is avail- able, and if the derogation is used "judiciously, with small numbers and strict supervision." PAGE 4 EU Commissioner Karmenu Vella Part of the Carmelite priory in Balluta could be turned into a supermarket