An inquiry has been launched into the purchasing process of the San Ġwann local council premises 13 years ago, after parts of its ceiling recently collapsed.

The inquiry was ordered by Parliamentary Secretary for Local Councils, José Herrera, following the incident last week when chunks of the ceiling of a room used for computer lessons and meetings came apart.

Eighteen months ago another room in the premises was condemned when the floor started caving in, and supports were set up in two-storey building’s basement.

The villa, in R. Caruana Dingli Street, was built in the late 1960s or early 1970s. The council bought it in 2000 for €224,000 and still has to pay €90,000.

The inquiry board is chaired by lawyer Joe Mifsud, with Local Government Department senior monitoring officer Chris Galea and auditing firm Grand Thornton as members.

Dr Herrera has given the board until the end of September to submit its preliminary report.

Council employees returning to work on the morning of August 12 discovered chunks of debris scattered across one room, damaging computer equipment and desks.

The villa is not being used because of the danger and the council is providing some services from the porch, while medical tests are now being provided from the parish office.

The council is seeking to relocate to a new building further down the main road, in Karin Grech Gardens, opposite the parish church.

Despite reports that the project, which had originally been proposed by the previous administration, has being shelved, mayor Etienne Bonello Dupuis said Infrastructure Minister Joe Mizzi had assured the council that funds would be allocated in the next Budget.