PD calls for ethical treatment of protestors

Partit Demokratiku has demanded the government takes action on the verbal abuse of activists by public workers on Santa Lucija that was reported yesterday,

So far, it said, the government has failed to condemn the abuse “hurled at activists” protesting the felling of trees in Santa Lucija.

There had not been an official statement by the time of going to print yesterday.

PD noted that when employees are paid from public funds, “it is expected that they follow the relevant standards of behaviour towards those funding their salaries”.

“The toleration by government of abusive behaviour by its supporters is a problem, but it will be even worse still if abusive behaviour by government employees and contractors becomes acceptable also,” the party said in a statement.

“The government has a responsibility to enforcing ethical standards of behaviour for those it employs, whether directly or indirectly. Activists expressing their democratic right to protest should be respected.” PD Leader Godfrey Farrugia said.

PD Deputy Leader Timothy Alden added, “As the government continues to literally bulldoze the quality of life of residents, the least it can do is uphold the dignity of those who disagree with it. A public statement against such behaviour would send a strong message.”

The Chamber of Architects and Civil Engineers ( Kamra tal-Periti), which has long railed against changes implemented to building regulations following the collapse of a number of residential buildings, has welcomed the government’s new commitments discussed on Friday.

Although the legal notice as amended only reflects two of the changes requested by the chamber, it said that “significant progress has been made on various other overarching and important matters that impact the industry, and which have been recorded in a Letter of Intent presented by the government.”

The commitments made by government, the chamber explained, include the establishment of a new authority to regulate the building and construction industry, along with the promulgation of new building and construction regulations in line with the chamber’s proposals published last May.

It said: “This will be accompanied by the long-awaited registration, licensing and classification of contractors and skilled labourers by the government, and in line with the Kamra tal-Periti’s proposals, thus ensuring that liabilities are carried by the professional and the contractor in a more equitable manner in line with the Civil Code.

“The new regulations will clearly delineate the various responsibilities of each of the participants on a construction site, which will, in the interim period, be addressed by Forms of Contract to be published shortly by the Kamra tal-Periti.”

The new regulations, it said, would also address liability periods of the participants on a construction site, bringing them in line with existing European models.

“The government has clearly acknowledged the fact that an overhaul of the construction industry is not only necessary, but also desirable to ensure that it moves forward in a sustainable manner. Although addressed to the Kamra tal-Periti, the Letter of Commitment is an important milestone for all actors in the industry, including the general public. The Kamra looks forward to being a primary participant in ensuring that the agreed reforms are implemented in the coming weeks and months.”

The government is also committed to tabling various amendments to the Periti Act, which currently regulates the profession, following Parliament’s summer recess. Such amendments have been the subject of discussion with successive governments since 2007, and there is now agreement on most of the proposed amendments. The chamber says it looks forward to concluding discussions in line with the direction given by members of the profession at its various general meetings, and to the successful conclusion of this matter.

In terms of Legal Notice 136 of 2019, as amended, there was agreement on various aspects, including the establishment of a register, to be published by the Building Regulation Office, of persons who are competent to provide the services of a site technical officer; the amendment of the various forms that are to be submitted to the Building Regulation Office to bring them in line with the latest legal

notice and the processes agreed to between the government and the chamber; and the eventual integration of the provisions of the legal notice in the regulations that will eventually be established under the act regulating the new authority.

The Chamber of Architects and Civil Engineers noted with satisfaction that practically all of the motions approved during its extraordinary general meetings last month “have been successfully addressed and there is now a recorded commitment by the government to implement significant reforms to the industry.

“The council of the Kamra tal-Periti is confident that there is the political will to ensure a comprehensive reform of the building and construction industry, as also outlined in the Kamra’s document ‘ A Modern Building and Construction Regulation Framework for Malta’, which has already received the support of the stakeholders consulted to date.”

Legal Notice 136 of 2019 on the Avoidance of Damage to Third Party Property Regulations came into force on 25 June 2019. This was later amended through Legal Notice 180 of 2019, which came into force on 29 July 2019, and which lifted the obligation of the architect ( perit) in charge of the project to approve the site technical officer appointed by the contractor, as well as widening the pool of persons authorised to provide such services through the inclusion of those in possession of an engineering degree.

In the period between the publication of the two legal notices, the chamber’s council worked incessantly to ensure that the interests of the profession are safeguarded, and that public safety is at the forefront of the new regulatory changes. Its primary contentions with the legal notice revolved around the fact that architects are the only actors on a construction site properly regulated, while all others operate in an unregulated manner, to the extent that the industry had reached, in the chamber’s own words, a state of crisis.