The previous owner of the land now dominated by the Lidl supermarket in Luqa was not allowed to develop the site due to the danger posed by low-flying aircrafts landing at the airport nearby.  

The site and the Lidl franchise are owned by property magnate Charles Polidano, known as ic-Caqnu.

Both the Civil Aviation Department and Malta International Airport had objected to the Mepa permit being issued back in 2007 due to its proximity to the runway.

The Malta Independent ran a tongue-in-cheek story featuring the numerous signs installed by Mepa around the car park warning of the dangers overhead.

The signs in the car park advise the general public “thet (sic) this site is located within the direct path of low flying aircraft.”

The Authority says that Lidl shoppers are exposed to “substantial health and safety risks, particularly in the event of an aircraft accident.”

When contacted, Lidl did not wish to comment on whether their shoppers are in any danger.

An internal inquiry was held by Mepa in 2009 into the granting of the permit, which was said to be highly irregular.

Mepa had set up a board of inquiry to investigate whether disciplinary action or criminal proceedings should be taken against employees within the planning directorate for the way they processed the Luqa Lidl permit.

The inquiry concluded that there was no malicious or criminal intent in their behaviour.

The board had recommended that that while it might be acceptable to a degree that there is a certain amount of flexibility in the interpretation of MEPA Guidelines and policies when applied to projects of national interest because of their scale or function, this should not be the case when applied to a villa project or any other sort of project.