First step towards yacht marinas privatisation

The government has taken its first concrete step towards privatising yacht marinas run by the Malta Maritime Authority by giving the go-ahead for legislation on the registration of yachts, government sources said.

It was announced in the last budget that the government would this year consider the privatisation of yacht marinas since it believes the management of marinas is not consistent with the regulatory role of the authority. The government argues that such a measure will provide new opportunities for investment and strengthen Malta's development as an international centre for yachting.

Legislation on the registration of yachts is seen as a necessary measure to achieve this goal and the decision to press ahead with this was taken during the first Cabinet meeting of the year.