FIAU fines are not unconstitutional, top court rules
A constitutional court has reversed a decision that had severely limited the Financial Intelligence Analysis Unit’s authority to impose fines. In a landmark judgment, the court found that although the FIAU is neither an independent tribunal nor an impartial court, the right to a fair hearing is upheld as long as those fined have “access to full review” before a court of law. Lawyers for the firm challenging the legality of the FIAU fine described the ruling as “retrograde” and plan to appeal the decision at the European Court of Human Rights. After citing ECHR jurisprudence the court concluded that it would follow the same line of reasoning: there was no breach of the right to a fair hearing as long as the subject person had “access to full review before a tribunal [or] in our case, a court set up by law.” (Times of Malta)
Local development plans are outdated, PM claims
Prime Minister Robert Abela acknowledged that Malta’s local plans are outdated and suggested it might be time for their revision. “Do the local plans from 18 years ago reflect today’s realities? I’d say they don’t,” Abela remarked during a conference on the property market. Previously opposed to revising local plans, Abela now emphasised the importance of confronting challenges head-on, stating that the government must not “shy away from making difficult decisions.” In his address, the PM highlighted three government priorities for the sector: improving construction quality, establishing a strategic vision, and minimising development’s negative impact on communities. (Maltatoday)
Services, food push inflation to 2.3%
Eurostat data shows that Malta’s annual inflation rate, as measured by the Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices (HICP), increased slightly to 2.4% in October 2024, just above the EU average of 2.3%. Malta’s inflation rate rose by 0.3 percentage points compared to the previous month. Similarly, both the EU and euro area inflation rates experienced modest increases. The euro area rate climbed from 1.7% in September to 2.0% in October, while the EU rate rose from 2.1% to 2.3%. Eurostat noted that the largest contributor to euro area inflation in October was services, followed by food. (Newsbook)
