Nationalist MP Beppe Fenech Adami has been ordered to remove illegalities at his Għargħur home after the Planning Authority rejected a sanctioning application.

Dr Fenech Adami applied to sanction landscaping works carried out on a field at the back of his home which were not in line with approved plans and had transformed the field into a garden.

The sanctioning request included paved stone pathways, an aviary and chicken coop, as well as variations in the shape and location of his swimming pool. Other interventions were proposed to be removed and the site returned to its original state.

While the two-storey home is within development boundaries, the swimming pool and field areas are ODZ.

The Planning Commission rejected the application on Wednesday after the Environment and Resources Authority objected due to “take-up of agricultural land and excessive site formalisation through the introduction of built development”.

The application also did not provide enough detail on the material of the animal enclosures, while the chicken coop requested for sanctioning included a structure of stone, contrary to rural policy, according to the PA’s case officer.

The Agricultural Advisory Committee said the coop was to keep chickens, guinea fowl, emus, ducks, peacocks and a turkey, while the aviary was planned for zebra finches, Java sparrows, canaries and budgies.

The case officer noted no issues with sanctioning the swimming pool area, which had been marginally reduced from that approved.

Dr Fenech Adami was last February awarded €3,000 in damages after a court ruled in his favour in a libel case against One News, which had broadcast claims of irregularities in the development of the swimming pool and the issue of development permits for the home.

The Labour Party said yesterday the PA’s decision confirmed that Dr Fenech Adami had attempted to deceive in insisting his property was in line with the law.

“Even though Dr Fenech Adami won his libel case, which is under appeal, no legalisms can detract from the fact that neither he nor the PN have any credibility to speak about protecting ODZ land,” Labour said.

“Dr Fenech Adami is not the first MP who has behaved contrary to the PN stance on ODZ land and has faced no censure from the party leadership. The PN, therefore, has no credibility when it speaks of environmental protection,” it charged.