A group of yacht owners have filed a judicial protest against Transport Malta and Gzira local council, calling for the removal of the flea market at the Ta' Xbiex Yacht Marina.

The 22 yacht owners argued that, recently, a group of hawkers had been allowed to organise themselves into a flea market every Saturday at the yacht marina. This, they argued, obstructed their access to their yachts as well as took up parking space.

The granting of the permits by Transport Malta constituted an illegality since the yachting centres regulations provided for good order, ensuring the security and safety of the yachts and the people who made use of the facilities, the prevention of pollution and preservation of the environment and their fairways and for ensuring the quality standards of the facilities.

The flea market, the yacht owners argued, was not contributing to good order and was compromising the yachts' security as well as the facilities of the yacht marina.

The resulting litter left behind after the stalls had been dismantled was impacting the environment and compromising the quality of the facilities offered at the marina, which was already very poor. In effect, civil proceedings were currently underway in order to get the transport authority to carry out the necessary repairs and maintenance works.

The owners are therefore asking the authority to revoke any permits that they may have given the hawkers, allowing them to set up their stalls.

The judicial protest was signed by lawyers David Camilleri and Joseph Gatt.

TA' XBIEX MARINA NOT LISTED AMONG SITES FOR OPEN MARKETS

Meanwhile, Economy Minister Chris Cardona, replying to a parliamentary question by Nationalist MP Claudio Grech, this evening listed 20 sites where open markets are allowed. The Ta' Xbiex marina was not among them.