Michael Falzon

The new rent scheme for Valletta shop tenants will be extended to other localities, Parliamentary Secretary Michael Falzon said yesterday.

Unveiled in May, the scheme will see tenants of retail outlets and catering establishments located on government property in parts of Valletta convert their lease agreement into a 45-year temporary emphyteusis.

Replying to questions from GRTU president Paul Abela during a Gvern li Jisma session at the planning authority in Floriana, Dr Falzon said some 20 operators have so far taken up the offer, though people had until May to apply.

The government was also planning to remunerate those owed up to €50,000 for land expropriated in the past years.

There are around 100 such cases that will cost the government some €2.5 to €3 million.

This measure may be extended to include those owed more than €50,000 in the coming years. Dr Falzon also referred to land expropriated from the Church authorities.

“We will give to Caesar what is owed to Caesar and what is owed to the Church to the Church,” he said, adding that the government will be clearing at least a third of its debt owed from the expropriation of land from the Church or religious orders, dating back as far as 1993.

There were pending issues about two sites in the St Paul’s Bay and Qawra area, he added.

Questions from the floor also referred to the policy aimed at ‘facilitating’ the placement of tables and chairs in open public spaces, which was released for public consultation earlier this year.

Dr Falzon said this policy was under pressure from a business point of view, among others, as Malta’s climate was ideal for outdoor dining. However, the biggest challenge remained enforcement.

Among those present in the audience, Malta Developers Association president Sandro Chetcuti commended the work by the planning authority and Land Department employees, which allowed for the implementation of policies that replaced outdated ones.

He reiterated his call to fellow developers to “make hay while the sun shines” and to invest in the regeneration of old property.