Malta's urbanization is out of control, the Partit Demokratiku said.

"The political direction favours population economics by dictating volumes but not values.  Sustainable development planning is non-existent and our natural habitat and environment is being severely compromised."

Government has now turned its eyes on land reclamation when there is no national masterplan and strategies on the subject are unpublished, the PD said. "Yet it issues Expressions of Interests and promises landfills to private entrepreneurs for their mega projects. It is a fact that land reclamation is only commercially feasible if accompanied by up-market real estate."

"It seems that MIDI's Manoel Island project is in for its share take. New plans have been submitted to the Planning Authority to reclaim land from the side of Manoel Island that faces the Gzira promenade to build a series of 10 storey apartment blocks to the detriment of the existing bay open space, urban environment, and public interests."

"This means that more than a quarter of the area of the inlet sea between the Gzira promenade and Manoel Island stretching from the far end of the yacht yard to the bridge, will be landfilled to accommodate MIDI, while more reclaimed land on the Gzira side is to be given to two adjoining hotels to share a lido. This is sheer nonsense. It has strong negative impacts," said MEP candidate Anthony Buttigieg.

"Land reclamation always comes at the cost of damage to an ecosystem. Hence it should be the very last resort when all other options have been exhausted," stated MEP candidate Camilla Appelgren.

Partit Demokratiku is not in favour of such a proposal as detailed by MIDI and supports the residents of Gzira in their concerns. PD also notes that the Public Domain Act has been intentionally side-lined and thrown in the abyss, and our environmental legislation is too weak to safeguard encroachment of development on reclaimed coastal land.