The Planning Authority board will be deciding whether to withdraw a permit for a terraced house which could threaten Gozo's only surviving Roman catacombs.

The controversial permit given to the development at a protected site in Għar Għerduf, Kercem, has triggered off protests from NGOs and residents. 

In a statement this afternoon, the PA said when the application was being processed, the Planning Directorate considered the zone as a Class B archaeology site. However, government records show the site had been protected as a Class A category (top protection) until October 2000. 

The same discrepancy was shown on the PA's electronic system used by the Planning Directorate when the application was evaluated.

"In light of this discrepancy there are grounds to withdraw the permit," the PA said, adding that chairman Johann Buttigieg had intervened in the matter.

The PA will carry out an internal investigation to understand what had led to this discrepancy. 

In a statement last week, the Planning Authority had denied having turned a blind eye to the controversy, adding that neither the Superintendence of Cultural Heritage nor the former Environment Protection Directorate had objected to this development.