PN leader Simon Busuttil said this evening that his party is drafting new guidelines in terms of which only exceptional permits will be granted under its ODZ policy.

Addressing the annual general meeting of the Malta Developers' Association, Dr Busuttil said that while a line should be drawn in order not to allow more development in rural areas, the few exceptions allowed should be defined.

"The rule in general should be not to permit development outside development zones. We will also soon state in which circumstances exceptions may be made so that everyone will know clearly where we stand," Dr Busuttil said.

He insisted that it was possible for the environment and sustainable development to live together but one aspect should not overcome the other.

Prime Minister Joseph Muscat said that the government would continue trying to attract high end clients to Malta and attract foreign direct investment.

He said that despite the criticism he would continue being a salesman to attract people wanting to invest.

He reiterated the government's plan to forge a public private partnership for the development of the Mriehel industrial estate to become a state of the art industrial zone.

Sandro Chetcuti was confirmed as MDA president.

He stressed the new guiding theme of the MDA "A strong economy, a strong environment" saying that the two went hand in hand.

"You can never have a good economy if you neglect the environment," he said.