MaltaToday previous editions

MT 21 May 2017

Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/826629

Contents of this Issue

Navigation

Page 7 of 71

maltatoday, SUNDAY, 21 MAY 2017 8 STEFAN PAUL GALEA ALTERNATTIVA Demokratika chairman Arnold Cassola said yesterday that the Malta Files arti- cles being published were merely the tip of an iceberg, referring to the previous involvement of Kon- rad Mizzi and Keith Schembri in the Panama Papers, and that this was bound to cause further dam- age to Malta and its reputation. Cassola, who was addressing a press conference to announce the party's final list of candidates and its manifesto for the upcom- ing election in June, said that the party's electoral slogan, "An alter- native vote is a clean vote for all", makes one reflect on the moral collapse that the country finds itself in, as well as on the environ- ment, the sea, the air and land. He said that although parties had changed in the past 50 years, the two major political blocs still occupied all the institutions and all the boards. "Today there are no checks and balances to defend the citizen," he said. "It is only the Ombudsman who is functioning in this role." Cassola said that the two major parties were not addressing the issue of illegal boathouses com- monly found in Armier Bay and which, AD believes, should be immediately demolished. And, unlike the Nationalist and Labour parties, AD was refusing to pander to the hunting lobby. "Whilst respecting the elector- ate's decision in the referendum, this is an issue which we cannot let go of," he said. "AD has always taken a stand against hunting in spring and would pursue its mis- sion to see an end to it." Cassola said that the proposed Gozo tunnel was not sustain- able and criticised other political parties for promising the devel- opment when not even one geo- logical study to evaluate all the possibilities had been completed. In its manifesto, AD vowed to clean up the institutional mess that had been created, where eve- rything has been taken up by both major political parties. "AD believes that anybody ap- pointed on government boards and authorities, as well as to im- portant posts such as the police commissioner, would have to go through a public hearing in par- liament, and parliament would then have to check if they would be fit for the job in question." Both PN and PL agree that a race track should be built, yet Muscat is not taking into con- sideration the Mosta and Attard residents, who will suffer noise pollution from the Ta' Qali set- up, whilst on the other hand Bu- suttil seems to want to have the same pollution effects imposed on the Ħal Kirkop and Ħal Safi residents. Cassola added that AD will not beat about the bush, but will come out clean in saying that a race track of the sort is not pos- sible in a small island like Malta. JURGEN BALZAN SOME 100 activists, academics, au- thors and members of civil society have signed a manifesto calling on the next government to revise in- come tax so that those who earn more, contribute more. This comes after both mainstream political parties promised income tax rebates and reductions in the current electoral campaign. The progressive proposals put for- ward in the manifesto include the entrenchment of "the right to a de- cent minimum wage" and "the right to regular cost of living adjustments" in the Constitution. The manifesto's signatories include former Prime Minister Karmenu Mifsud Bonnici and Yana Mintoff, the former Labour candidate and daughter of the late former Labour leader Dom Mintoff; and outspo- ken members of the clergy such as Fr Mark Montebello, OP, Fr Gwann Xerri and Fr Ang Seychell. The manifeso also calls for a reform in rent laws and the introduction of reference budgets – baskets of goods and services that are considered nec- essary to reach an acceptable stand- ard of living. The six-point manifesto also calls for full transparency. "The govern- ment must publish online all docu- mentation which is in the public interest." Environmental protection features heavily in the manifesto. "No devel- opment should take place in Outside Development Zones, by imposing a moratorium," the manifesto says. Moreover, priority should go to restoring old buildings and populate vacant dwellings. While calling for the creation of green and open spaces in densely populated areas, the manifesto also calls for a concerted effort to reduce dependency on the construction in- dustry by strengthening other eco- nomic sectors. It demanded policies which em- brace "effective inclusion" and pu- nitive measures against companies which employ people irregularly; as well as fairer trade deals between Europe and Third World coun- tries, urging the new government to strongly oppose wars and military interventions which are displacing people, and embrace active neutral- ity, condemn war crimes, and demil- itarise the Mediterranean. News Malta Files 'the tip of the iceberg', Cassola warns 100 activists pen progressive manifesto 15% TAX ON INCOME FROM PART-TIME SELF-EMPLOYMENT: CLOSING DATE 30 JUNE 2017 The closing date for the payment of the 15% tax on income from part-time self-employment for 2016 is 30 June 2017. The payment must be accompanied by the TA22 form. The form and payment can be eŽected online at www.ird.gov.mt. For further information, please visit the FAQs page on our website or call 153. • • € € Income Tax/I.D. No. Name Designation Address Signature Date FORM TA 24 The Inland Revenue Department uses the information provided, to process this form in accordance with the Income Tax Acts and subsidiary legislation. We may check information provided by you, or information about you provided by a third party, with other information held by us. We will not disclose information about you to anyone outside the Inland Revenue Department unless permitted by law. The Inland Revenue Department treats your personal information in accordance with the Data Protection Act 2001 (Cap 440) to protect your privacy. Any queries may be addressed to the Data Controller, Inland Revenue Department, Floriana FRN 0170 • • € € Income Tax/I.D. No. Name Designation Address Signature Date FORM TA 24 The Inland Revenue Department uses the information provided, to process this form in accordance with the Income Tax Acts and subsidiary legislation. We may check information provided by you, or information about you provided by a third party, with other information held by us. We will not disclose information about you to anyone outside the Inland Revenue Department unless permitted by law. The Inland Revenue Department treats your personal information in accordance with the Data Protection Act 2001 (Cap 440) to protect your privacy. Any queries may be addressed to the Data Controller, Inland Revenue Department, Floriana FRN 0170 JAMES DEBONO A 30 sq.m extension to the foot- print of a new dwelling approved against the advice of the Environ- ment and Resources Authority, has now been approved by the Environment and Planning Com- mission last Friday. The EPC is the Planning Au- thority organ responsible for day- to-day planning decisions. The proposal involves an ex- tension at ground floor level, the addition of a basement level un- derneath the footprint of the pro- posed extension, and will bring the dwelling's total floor area to 180 sq.m. The Environment and Resourc- es Authority described this ap- plication as a "telling example" of its concerns for foreseeable pres- sures for expansion to accommo- date ancillary demands once ini- tial permission is granted. The solitary farmhouse is cur- rently under construction on the site known as Tas-Santi, located in the limits of Mgarr (Malta). The area is characterized by both agricultural land and garigue and is identified as an Area of High Landscape Value due to its vicin- ity to the Victoria Lines. The original permit was granted despite objections by the Environment Protection Directorate, which raised con- cern over the envisaged nega- tive environmental impacts that the proposal would exert on the environmentally sensi- tive context in which it is situ- ated. The ERA now says the lat- est permit further extends the building towards the edge of the headwaters of the valley. The latest permit not only has increased the building mass and footprint over and above the floorspace and footprint that were approved in previous permits but includes the use of glass panels and aluminium which the ERA considered "ex- traneous and intrusive in such an open rural area". The 2015 per- mit was only is- sued thanks to a legal notice is- sued by the new- ly elected Labour government in 2013. This is be- cause the origi- nal permission was valid only till May 2014. The renewal applica- tion was submit- ted on Novem- ber 2014. But a legal notice in 2013 allowed any d e v e l o p m e n t permission ap- proved on or af- ter 3 August 2006, which would have otherwise expired before 31 March, 2015, to be made auto- matically operative till 31 March, 2015. So the renewal application was submitted within the legal timeframe. The application was also ap- proved because no new poli- cies were introduced after 2009 "which would militate against the issue of the renewal of permis- sion." ERA flags 'telling example' of PA's piecemeal permitting Photo shows original structure before permits were issued in 2009 and 2015. Now the PA has approved another 30 sq.m thanks to new policies Arnold Cassola

Articles in this issue

Archives of this issue

view archives of MaltaToday previous editions - MT 21 May 2017