PL, PN have been too close for comfort with developers and construction industry – ADPD

The PL and the PN have been too close for comfort with developers and the construction industry, ADPD Chairperson Carmel Cacopardo said.

Cacopardo was reacting to a statement made by Finance Minister Clyde Caruana last week. Caruana had said that Malta must shift away from its dependency on construction.

“Minister Caruana’s declaration is welcome,” Cacopardo said.

“It signifies that at long last someone has realised that the large parliamentary parties, PLPN, have caused great harm as a result of their closeness to the development/construction industry. This excessive closeness has resulted in a dilution of the regulatory effectiveness of development with substantial environmental damage, in most cases of an irreversible nature. If Minister Caruana wishes to be credible, he should ensure that government takes the necessary steps, such that the authorities dealing with land use planning and the protection of the environment honour their brief.”

“All this has not come about since 2013: it has been developing over a quite longer timeframe. PLPN have been too close for comfort with the development/construction industry. Since 2013 this closeness has resulted in the government being in cahoots with the industry more openly. In the absence of clear lobbying rules, no one knows exactly what has been going on,” the ADPD Chairperson added.

“If Minister Clyde Caruana wants to be taken seriously, we await, without further delay, for the conclusion of the consultation exercise on the lobbying rules prepared by the Commissioner for Standards in Public Life way back in April 2020. Throughout the years, the construction/development industry made hay while the sun was shining in the absence of lobbying rules. If all this changes it would be a good step forward.”