EU unconvinced by objectors' case

The European Commission yesterday said that from the information it has gathered so far, there did not seem to be any breach of EU rules in relation to the Qui-Si-Sana development proposal.

However the Commission invited the Qui-Si-Sana Residents Association to furnish it with any other information it might have on the issue.

The subject was raised yesterday at the European Parliament's Petitions Committee during a discussion on the presentation of a petition signed by 693 Maltese citizens against the development of a public garden into a commercial centre and a car park in Sliema. The case was presented to the Committee by Simon Camilleri on behalf of the petitioners.

He complained that the government was breaching a number of EU directives on this issue mentioning directives on environment impact assessments (EIA), public contracts and citizens' access to information.

However, according to the Commission, Mr Camilleri did not substantiate his claims and asked him to provide more information if he insists on his allegations.

The Commission said that from the investigations it is conducting it does not result that there is any breach of EU rules.

Regarding the directive dealing with EIAs, the Commission stated that the car park project falls under those areas where it is the national Maltese authority, in this case the Malta Environment and Planning Authority, that decides whether an environmental impact assessment is required or not.

The Commission said that from the claims made by the petitioners, neither was it clear whether development consent has been given. Furthermore, the Commission commented that no timeframe for the project was indicated and pointed out that if this project was started prior to Malta's accession, then Malta could not be considered in breach of any directive.

However, the Commission said that if the petitioners were still of the opinion that there is a breach, then more information needed to be supplied.

Mr Camilleri said he still felt there is a breach in terms of the directive on citizens' access to information and that the Maltese government has so far refused to give any reason why an EIA was not carried out.