Public outrage on a number of planning applications that have sprouted up recently is there for all to see.

One here can mention the Birkirkara hotel, the Manikata application to change the zoning of a site, the application for apartments on vacant land in Mqabba which was once ODZ but was rationalised, just to name a few.

As much uproar as they could create, we’ve seen in the past that public uproar is not enough to stop applications. If an application conforms with policy, then it will likely go through. A major issue is with the policies themselves, and the inability of those approving applications to see the wider impacts of development. After all, as Din L-Art Helwa’s Executive President Alex Torpiano once said, the Planning Authority doesn’t really do planning, but does application processing.

We’ve seen so many controversial projects be approved without really taking into context the wider implications. This is also the case when it comes to many minor projects located in an area also, which collectively have an impact of traffic in an area for instance, but individually would not. And let’s be honest, people are fed up with the current situation. The PA has failed to really plan the country’s development well. The streetscapes are, quite frankly, appalling.

The need to change policies and reform environment and planning institutions has been highlighted by the eNGOs, and they even did so in a meeting with Prime Minister Robert Abela.

Speaking with The Malta Independent recently, Moviment Graffitti’s Andre Callus said that in a meeting between NGOs and the Prime Minister after the protest, organisations expressed their worries about the existing planning policies. Right after the meeting itself, Callus had said that, regarding reforming policies, for the most part, the government seemed to express its interest. However, when the topic of "defective authorities" was brought up, Callus said that the government did not show support in this aspect.

The Prime Minister also made a statement recently, where he said, among other things, that applications which do not conform to the regulations should not be submitted. But Torpiano made a valid point. “Projects which do not respect planning regulations, one would expect, would not be approved. The problem lies with the proposals that do respect planning regulations, planning regulations which are not tight enough to result in good quality urban spaces and good quality architecture.”

Given the way planning has been carried out, it is clear that changes to policies and reforms within the authorities are needed. The government needs to listen to what the eNGOs are saying and act.