The Labour Party should have asked people in Siggiewi whether they preferred a shelter for when they got older or a room where a few party supporters could meet, Labour MP Marlene Farrugia said this afternoon.

An encroachment permit to allow the Siggiewi Labour Party Club to keep using part of the council's rented property was 'secretly' renewed, Times of Malta revealed this week.

The council immediately reacted saying it would take court action. The agreement had originally been for a five year term to give the party time to find a new site.

But the permit was extended to August 18 next year against a payment of €1,000 to the Lands Department.

The council was allocated the premises by the Lands Department in 2010 after the Labour Party club was evicted at the end of its lease.

It had planned to use the area to provide new services included a night centre for the elderly, educational courses and a public library.

Speaking during the Budget debate in Parliament, Dr Farrugia said that had the Labour Party asked the people what they wanted, it would have been given its answer.

Asking whether there was no other suitable place for the club, Dr Farrugia, who is a dentist in the locality, said that had she been approached she would have offered her honoraria for the party to find another room to rent and use as a club.