With reference to the article published in Times of Malta on July 31, entitled ‘Bonnici: postponing elections would require a change in law’, it needs to be clarified that, in his reply to a question posed by the newspaper’s journalist, the Minister for Justice, Culture and Local Government Owen Bonnici did not say that “postponing local council elections would breach the Local Councils Act” as wrongly quoted in the article.

Rather, the minister replied that, although the government is entitled to postpone the upcoming rounds of local council elections by means of a legal notice (issued under article 72(2) of the Local Councils Act), an amendment to the main act is a more long-term solution should the proposal of holding all local elections on the same day as the European Parliament elections be adopted by the government.

The procedure relating to the postponing of local council elections stems from a set of legal amendments which the previous government had included in the Local Councils Act so that they are held every two years rather than every year.

Needless to be said, for this to be attained, the tenure of legislatures of the various local councils were all extended up to a minimum of one year and a maximum of two years upon expiration of their “ordinary term”.

Therefore, our country has already experienced an exercise of reorganisation/postponement of local elections – albeit for different time-terms compared to the present proposal.

There are of course arguments in favour and against this proposal and the government is keen to listen to all the views of stakeholders on this issue.

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