Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/712521
Newspaper post SUNDAY • 7 AUGUST 2016 • ISSUE 874 • PUBLISHED EVERY WEDNESDAY AND SUNDAY SUNDAY • 7 AUGUST 2016 • ISSUE 874 • PUBLISHED EVERY WEDNESDAY AND SUNDAY • PUBLISHED EVERY WEDNESDAY AND SUNDAY maltatoday COMMENT PGS 19-26 PGS 19-26 SUNDAY • 7 AUGUST 2016 • ISSUE 874 • PUBLISHED EVERY WEDNESDAY AND SUNDAY today today • PUBLISHED EVERY WEDNESDAY AND SUNDAY today • PUBLISHED EVERY WEDNESDAY AND SUNDAY Environment authority will not appeal Mriehel, Townsquare decisions SUNDAY • malta SUNDAY • THE ISLAND OF TOWERS €1.40 YOUR FIRST READ AND FIRST CLICK OF THE DAY WWW.MALTATODAY.COM.MT MATTHEW VELLA THE Labour government has decided to retain Anton Attard, until last week Chief Executive Officer at PBS, to coordinate all preparations for the Eurovision Song Contest in the adult and jun- ior sections. Both are productions that fall under the public broad- caster's remit, attracting record audience ratings for the channel. MALTATODAY is informed that Attard may retain his €74,000 salary at the Public Broadcasting Services, at least until the end of 2016, without the burden of running the national broadcaster. Attard was replaced by his former colleague, the veteran broad- caster John Bundy last week although MaltaToday was told by sources that it was highly unlikely that an official handover will take place since the two had a falling out. Bundy has already com- plained in an interview to the newspaper Illum that he had been denied a show on PBS because of "spite" inside the national broad- caster – a veiled reference, inside sources say, to Attard. Once again, the management 'change' is redolent of the Labour administration's style to retain influencers by the side of the gov- ernment, by keeping them in top posts tagged at handsome sala- ries. The role of CEO at the public broadcaster may bring with it a de- gree of control on the product of PBS, which remains Malta's most watched station by far. But the distance between the Office of the Prime Minister and the television station's top posts is a short one: critics like the Nationalist Party, whose former administrations held clear control on PBS content and editorial decisions, are un- stinting critics of the equal hold Labour's top decision-makers have on PBS. Former PBS chief retained on special Eurovision brief JURGEN BALZAN THE Environment and Resources Authority (ERA) will not be appealing against the Planning Authority's decision to approve a controversial 38-storey tower in Sliema and four smaller towers in Mriehel despite pre- viously expressing doubts on the visual impact of the mega projects. In reply to MaltaToday's questions, the ERA said that since mitigation measures are included as condi- tions in the permits, it would not be appealing. On Thursday, the Planning Authority (PA) board approved the 38-storey tower in Qui Si Sana, Sliema, and a four-tower block that rises to 20 storeys in Mrie- hel. The former project is owned by the Gasan Group, while the latter is the brainchild of the Gasan and Tu- mas groups. ERA chairman Victor Axiak – who did not attend Thursday's meeting because he was indisposed – sub- mitted comments in writing in which he expressed his concerns on the visual im- pact of the Mriehel project. PAGE 3 JAMES DEBONO 12 -13 A political class in thrall to the business caste CONRAD THAKE 14 -15 'The success of all 10 projects will be a big question mark' FREE WITH MALTATODAY SAVIOUR BALZAN JOSANNE CASSAR PAGE 2 John Bundy (left) was appointed as PBS chief executive, but his predecessor Anton Attard (right) will retain a supervisory role on the Eurovision production that falls under PBS's remit