The National Commission for Further and Higher Education said that the rigour and standards that are statutorily required to apply to all applications for university status in Malta will not in any way be reduced by the changes in Legal Notice 150/2015.

In reaction to a report published in The Malta Independent today, the commission said the changes in the subsidiary legislation published through Legal Notice 150/2015 do not in any way impinge upon, affect or modify the rigour of the accreditation process for those seeking a university licence in Malta. The changes introduced stem directly from the Government's policy of encouraging greater internationalisation and pluralism of higher education in Malta.

The new legislation, as opposed to the previous one, allows wider structural differences in a university structure and strengthens the quality and standards framework for a university.

Within this context, the Education Ministry reiterates the fact that the changes introduced in the Education Act are not in any way linked to the submission by the Sadeen Group, as the article published this morning by the Malta Independent on Sunday seems to suggest.