Backdated legal notice announces amendments to Maltese Language Act

The amendments to the Maltese Language Act were brought into force in a legal notice published on Friday, which was backdated to 1 May 2017.

The changes proposed in the Maltese Language Act, which falls under the Ministry of Education and Employment, kicked off heated discussions on the structure of the Maltese Language Council. The latter fought back the idea of any amendments arguing that the proposed changes will only weaken the academic input of the council which is responsible for very delicate decisions with regard to the Maltese language.

The Act brought in a change in the number of people sitting on the council. Originally, the Maltese Language Act provided for 11 members to be on the council. The Education Ministry then proposed the council to be formed out of more representatives, including adding representatives who are not necessarily Maltese language academics. The latter was what made the council protest as it feared that with the changes, the majority of the council members would not be academics.

Following further discussions with the Ministry, the council will now have 15 members. A chairman will be appointed by the government following a recommendation by the Akkademja tal-Malti and the Department of Maltese Language at the University of Malta. The council will also have a representative of the Akkademja tal-Malti, a representative nominated jointly by the Department of Maltese Studies and the Institute of Linguistics at the University and a representative of the Education Division coming from the National Curriculum Department and nominated by the Minister. An Art Council representative will also be present together with representatives from the Institute of Journalists and the Broadcasting Authority. A representative for book publishers, teachers and from the translation department at the University of Malta will also form part of the team.