Minister Ian Borg and Parliamentary Secretary Chris Agius visited the Lands Authority to announce developments at the Authority.

Minister Borg started by commending the work of all those employed within the Authority, the board, the CEO, and Parliamentary Secretary Agius, and said that thanks to this good work, the Authority is gaining momentum. He made reference to the system of online forms which was launched during their last visit and expressed his satisfaction with the success of this system. He outlined that, to date, the Authority has 21 forms which conform to the Government Lands Act, and which reflect most of the requests received by the Authority. Ian Borg said that, since then, there have been more than 300 applications which are being tackled by a number of officials solely focused on the processing of such forms. The Minister said that the Authority has received positive feedback since launching these forms, as the system has not only facilitated the service but also created a transparent system. Ian Borg spoke about the developments that are being targeted by the Authority, amongst which are the extension of this system by introducing more forms to cover each request, together with key performance indicators and timeframes during which each case must be concluded.

Parliamentary Secretary Chris Agius said that although there is still more work to be done with various challenges, the work that has been carried out to date by the Authority goes to show that the authority is moving in the right direction. This is also a clear sign that the work is being done with great professionality and efficiency.

This event included the signing of the transfer of property from Ursuline sisters back to the Government. A letter of comfort was also presented to Għaqda Ġurnalisti Sport for the transfer of a property which is set to become their headquarters and a museum. The Minister stated that this goes to show that the Government is doing its utmost to make the best use of its properties.

He concluded by expressing his hopes that this momentum will be sustained, something which is possible thanks to hard work and determination, and reiterated his commitment for work to continue in order for the Authority to keep being improved and strengthened.