Opposition Leader Simon Busuttil this morning committed himself to re-negotiating the government deal that granted Outside Development Land at Zonqor Point to a private Jordanian developer for the purposes of constructing the American University of Malta (AUM), should he be elected as Prime Minister.

The announcement by the current government was met with heavy criticism, even after the government announced it would make a ‘compromise’ and reduce the portion of land taken up, effectively splitting up the campus into two sites, that of Zonqor point and the previously dilapidated Dock 1 at Bormla.

The deal was approved by Parliament in December 2015.

Dr Busuttil’s statement came during a press conference held this morning that announced the Nationalist Party’s (PN) environmental policy document, which contains 16 key focus areas and 171 proposals.

In the document, the PN pledged to address the troubling issue of over development and vacant properties, the exclusion of land-reclamation purely for the sake of speculative purposes and the strengthening of solar rights.

It also deals with a common skyline policy.

In the document, the PN outlines how the environment is a reflection of “our values”, where Dr Busuttil pledged to bring to an end the tension between economic progress and environmental protection. He also called for the protection of the environment to be enshrined into the Constitution.

He slammed the current Environmental and Resources Authority, stressing the need for it to be a credible and formidable force.

Dr Busuttil concluded by identifying the PN’s environmental policy as parts of the internal effort to reinvent itself.

The full PN environmental policy document can be found here. 

Front Ħarsien ODZ statement

Front Ħarsien ODZ, an environmental NGO created in response to the ODZ Zonqor point land grab announcement issued a statement saying it "welcomed Dr Simon Busuttil's statement to renegotiate AUM Żonqor deal should he become Prime Minister.