The legacy of Valletta 2018 would be the rebirth of the capital city, Justice and Culture Minister Owen Bonnici has told parliament.
He responded to claims by Opposition MP Karl Gouder and others that the initiative had fallen flat by leaving no legacy.
Mr Gouder had asserted that years had been spent agonizing over how to use Valletta 2018 to instil a greater appreciation of culture among the Maltese.
But this aim had not been reached, and the events of the past year would be forgotten as they had not left anything tangible behind=.
In his reply, Dr Bonnici pointed to MUŻA (the new arts museum), the new University Campus Theatre (formerly known as MITP), and the refurbished Tritons fountain as evidence of the real impact that the programme had on Valletta.
The exchanges were made during the last part of the debate on amendments to the Cultural Heritage Act.
Referring to the use of direct orders by various cultural agencies, the minister argued that it was impossible to do otherwise when a specific performer needed to be engaged.
Addressing the content of the amendments under discussion, the minister referred to criticisms made by Nationalist MP Therese Comodini Cachia last week and insisted that the Opposition MP seemed to have understood nothing of what was being proposed.
The amendments would not reduce the power available to the Superintendence of Cultural Heritage, but would reduce its duties in order to allow it to focus its resources in a better way.
Dr Bonnici argued that the Superintendence for Cultural Heritage had never been more involved. Whereas the Planning Authority had formerly decided which cases to refer to the Superintendent for an opinion, a decision taken by the government years prior had started the referral of all planning applications to his office.
It was furthermore untrue that the Planning Authority could override the decisions taken by the Superintendence, which had extensive powers to protect Maltese heritage. Thirteen graduates had been engaged by the Superintendence over a one-year period, he said, whereas there had not been 13 persons working there in total prior to 2013.
The minister pledged to take on board a suggestion to reduce the required hours of professional development stipulated by the new amendments in order for the conservation warrant to be retained, should Parliament give its assent.
Mr Gouder praised the fact that those who deserved warrants would finally receive the professional status that their qualifications and experience merited.
Meanwhile, during parliamentary questions, Transport Minister Ian Borg yesterday asked the Opposition to state its position on the Central Link Project.
The proposed works had been on the blackboard since the 1980s, but successive PN governments had refused to carry them out to the detriment of those living in congested central areas.
The project would address the infrastructural bottleneck in the centre of Malta, which could no longer be swept under the rug.
The original plans had been amended multiple times following feedback, Dr Borg said.
The minister also commented about the Marsa flyover, for which works were well underway, and the Gozo tunnel, which various research had shown would lead to benefits for both Malta and Gozo. There had been complete silence from the Opposition on the latter issue, he said.