A legal lacuna which has seen large animals - such as tigers - imported by people who lack the facilities in which to keep them and who end up building illegal structures instead, should be addressed by draft regulations that are presently being finalised, The Malta Independent is informed.

A spokesman for the Parliamentary Secretariat for Animal Rights confirmed that draft regulations on the owning and keeping of animals are presently being analysed by the authorities and departments falling under the Environment Ministry. He confirmed that these should be presented for public consultation in the coming weeks.

Crucially, these new regulations "will include aspects on suitable housing standards, which must be inspected and approved prior to the arrival of the animal."

As it stands, there is nothing preventing people from importing animals, even if they may not have the appropriate structures to house them in.

This anomaly creates a number of concerns, including an obvious animal welfare issue: the imported animals may end up suffering in cramped living quarters.

But a number of cases have shown that there is another issue at stake: the construction of illegal facilities to house exotic animal collections.

The Malta Environment and Planning Authority may issue enforcement notices - and it has done so - but ultimately, it will find it difficult, if not impossible, to intervene when the demolition of illegal structures would leave various exotic animals in need of a home.

The authority, after all, does not have any facilities it can keep wild animals in, so intervening would mean leaving animals to languish in inadequate living conditions - and thus be indirectly involved in animal cruelty.

Easily the most blatant case of illegalities concerning a collection of exotic animals can be seen at the Montekristo Estates in the limits of Siġġiewi, which is owned by brothers and construction magnates Charles 'iċ-Ċaqnu' and Paul Polidano.

The two brothers have amassed a considerable menagerie over the years, with various species of birds and exotic mammals such as zebras, camels and tigers.

The sprawling site is subject to numerous enforcement notices, although not all are related to the keeping of animals.

The site lacks a zoo licence - one cannot be obtained for a largely illegally-built zoo - the Montekristo Animal Park was opened to the public in October 2011 and remains open to this day.

In light of the multiple, blatant illegalities on site, MEPA enforcement officers turned up in force in November 2013, with some 150 soldiers and policemen in tow, to demolish illegal structures on site. But as happens with many such actions, they were stopped on the strength of a temporary warrant of prohibitory injunction obtained by the owner of the illegally-built works.

A court case is ongoing, but the animal collection has only grown since then, and there are indications that further illegal construction works have taken place.

All this did not stop Montekristo Estates from continuing its commercial activities: it even obtained a trading licence for a trade fair last summer, in which the zoo was promoted as one of the main attractions.

But when contacted at the time, MEPA CEO Johann Buttigieg highlighted the problem the presence of an illegal zoo caused to the authority.

"Where would we put the animals if we were to close down the zoo? We do not have a place for them. We do not intend to close down an illegal zoo and open another," Mr Buttigieg had told The Malta Independent.

The Malta Wildlife Park, which is located in the limits of Rabat, also involved the erection of various illegal structures before these were sanctioned last year, allowing for a zoo licence to be issued.

One can only hope that the proposed legislation would address such illegalities, as well as raise animal welfare standards.