Justice Minister Jonathan Attard together with Home Affairs Minister Byron Camilleri have proposed a bill to stop those accused of crimes from attempting to be granted bail by delaying the court hearing process as much as possible.

The current criminal code states that people facing 15 years or more of prison time are automatically entitled to bail if their case is not heard within 30 months of their arraignment.

Camilleri said the bill paves the way to remove the 30 month limit when the accused has harmed himself or is to blame for the delay. In the cases of harm, court process can be prolonged by two to six months.

Attard said that the bill is the fruit of consultations with victims of crime in order to ensure that justice is served. “The government is committed to combatting delaying tactics used by those accused of serious crimes,” Camilleri said.

Nationalist Party's Justice spokesperson Karol Aquilina stated that the PN fully agrees with the bill and said that an ‘urgent Parliamentary session’ is needed in order to approve the bill at all stages.