Quotas requiring local wardens to issue a certain amount of fines every day will be scrapped by the end of the year, the Parliamentary Secretary for Local Government, Stefan Buontempo, said this evening.

Speaking at a public discussion at the Auberge de Castille, Dr Buontempo said the quotas, which obliged wardens to issue fines just to secure their income, had turned the whole wardens system into a “ticket-issuing machine”.

He explained how the government was setting-up a new agency to serve as a regulator in the sector.

The agency would procure the services of wardens from the private sector at a fixed price, and would also introduce quality assurance mechanisms and continuous training for wardens.

New uniforms and the introduction of a customer care service would also be part of an effort to improve wardens’ image.

Dr Buontempo said his aim was to implement a credible and sustainable system which could take on a more civic and educational role, rather than purely punitive.

“This reform will transform wardens from Gestapo officers hiding behind trees ready to suck the money out of citizens’ pockets into friends of our community,” he said.