Saturday, 5th July 2008 - 12:39CET
Local councils say their term is too short
Persistent calls are being made for the term of local councils to be extended to four years or five from the current three, the Parliamentary Secretary for Public Consultation, Chris Said, said today.
He was speaking at a press conference on the consultation process currently under way on the reform of local government.
He said all 19 local councils he has met so far had argued that three years was too short a term to plan and get things done. He said it was a view which he, as a former Mayor (of Nadur) shared.
Dr Said said several councils had also called for the funding formula to be reviewed, especially in the case of councils which have a heavy influx of non-residents during the day, such as Valletta.
It was also proposed that the government, through the Local Councils Department, should facilitate access by local councils to EU funds.
Dr Said said it was hoped that legislation on reforming local councils would be presented to Parliament late this year or in early 2009.
By that time he intends to meet all local councils, constituted bodies and NGOs and is also holding meetings with the public.
Dr Said said other suggestions included ways how neighbouring councils could work together on a regional basis. Some councils said they, not the government, should be responsible for the cleanliness of arterial roads which have residents. Others called for a special fund for major projects handled by the councils.
There were no calls for a reduction of the number of councils. Indeed, some calls were made for their number to be increased, since each locality had its own identity, Dr Said said.
Further information can be found www.kunsillilokali2015.gov.mt and suggestions can be made on kunsillilokali2015@gov.mt or freephone 80072340.
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Comments
It would also make sense for some sort of Regional Authority that would oversee major work that entails the co-operation of more than one Council.
Also time that the question of Council Tax is brought into the open for discussion,no matter how unpalatable that might be to many (including yours truly).
One doesn't have to be a genius to realize that this idea has been on the cards since Councils were first brought about surely?
Traffic matters, like one-way streets, road ramps (we have millions of them), etc. should be left in the hands of experts in the field, appointed to a centralized board, like ADT or the old Traffic Control Board. As matters stand now, we have elected councillors given charge of such jobs and other unrelated ones, on the strength of their popularity in the locality and not on their qualifications. I am sure that we have had councillors who have never driven a car, draw up plans for one-way streets, sprinkling their localities with 'sleeping policemen' wherever it took their fancy.
Incidentally, the Minister of Finance, Mr T. Fenech, for whom I have the greatest respect, was reported to observe that these road ramps are costing motorists and the taxpayer in general, a lot of unnecessary expenses. See to this matter, Mr Fenech and get these ramps removed from our roads. I am sure most motorists would be grateful if this measure is taken and we would stop from making ourselves the laughing stock of Europe.
Mayors should not be allowed to chair a Council more than two consecutive terms. This would allow for fresh air and not dominance by one village sector over a minority in the community. No payment should be made to councillors as this would attract those who have in interest in Mammona rather than the common good.
Prior consent from the department should be sought every time money is being spent on matters which are not devolved to the Council in order to ascertain that money is being spent on matter for the common good.
My wife doesn't buy Blue cheese and Edam cheese because its skin is Red, for fear of introducing politics during dinner :))
Maltese mix politics even with their minestra.
As regards iNCOME TAX it is easy to calculate how much is paid collectively by the residents in a particular locality.
As regards VAT it is rather easy though not 100% accurate due to the lack of issuing receipts by some outlets.
At least, this may lead to more enforcement on issuing VAT receipts as people start asking for them since the income of their locality would depend to a certain extent on the amount of VAT paid.
In my opinion, an influx of people during the day is no excuse to get more money, except through the amount of VAT paid by outlets in the locality which would automatically increase through more sales.
An income based on TAX payments would benefit those localities whose residents are more honest.
Perhaps the elections can be combined to save some money to the tax payers.