It’s not the first time this newspaper has written about the need for proper enforcement and deterrents against planning irregularities, and unfortunately it probably won’t be the last either.
We have consistently insisted that enforcement by the Planning Authority against illegalities needs to be much more effective: be it through an increase in enforcement resources or through the setting of harsher deterrents.
The latest piece of news which continued to support this notion emerged last week, when The Malta Independent reported that Christian Borg was set to be fined a paltry €2 every day by the Planning Authority for an illegally built structure on the roof of his Swieqi penthouse.
Borg, who is facing criminal charges on a raft of serious crimes including kidnapping, money laundering, and tax fraud, was the subject of complaints earlier this month when a structure resembling a large caged enclosure was seen being built on top of his penthouse in Swieqi.
An enforcement notice was issued by the Planning Authority against Borg for the development, which is in an apartment block situated on the corners of Triq il-Giebja and Triq ta' L-Ghoqod in Swieqi.
This confirmed that the structure was built illegally, and the PA also identified Borg as the contravenor.
The document showing the enforcement notice was first shared by Momentum leader Arnold Cassola, and it showed that once 15 days have elapsed from the notice being issued then daily fines of €2 will start to be issued – a fine which would double to €4 should 365 days elapse without the illegal development having been dealt with.
A fine of just €2 is plain and simply absurd. You can build an illegal development on top of your penthouse, and your only consequence would be paying for the equivalent of four pastizzi every day – or paying for a winter two-hour bus ticket (the summer one is actually more expensive, at €2.50).
In the world of inflation, it seems there’s no cheaper time than the present to commit a planning illegality, judging by how irrelevant the fines against a development like this are.
The planning sector already has a ‘wild west’ reputation, where many think that there are little to no consequences if they choose to do as they please, permits or not. Cases like this only continue to support that notion and reduce the credibility of the powers that be in this sector even more.
How can the Planning Authority and the government create an environment where it makes it clear that illegalities will not be tolerated when the consequences for it are so decisively inconsequential.
It’s time that the authorities come down hard on illegalities like this – €2 per day just doesn’t come anywhere near close to cutting it. Something in the hundreds or even more per day, on the other hand, might start to make people think twice about doing as they please.