ACT No. LIX of 2020 AN ACT to amend the Local Government Act, Cap. 363.

I assent.

(L.S.)

GEORGE VELLA

President

15th December, 2020

ACT No. LIX of 2020

AN ACT to amend the Local Government Act, Cap. 363.

BE IT ENACTED by the President, by and with the advice and

consent of the House of Representatives, in this present Parliament

assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:-

The short title of this Act is the Local Government Short title.

(Amendment) Act, 2020 and this Act shall be read and construed as

one with the Local Government Act, hereinafter referred to as the Cap. 363.

"principal Act".

In article 2 of the principal Act, the definition "Director" shall Amendment of

article 2 of the

be substituted by the following new definition

principal Act.

" "Director" means the Director General responsible for

Local Government;".

In sub-article (2) of article 34 of the principal Act, Amendment of

immediately after the first proviso, there shall be added the following article

principal Act.

new proviso

"Provided further that when regulations of general

application are made by the Minister as stipulated herein, any

bye-laws regarding the same subject-matter shall be ipso jure

repealed, and specific conditions relevant to the Local Council

shall be published as a schedule to the said regulations by

general application.".

Article 48 of the principal Act shall be amended as follows

(a) in sub-article (3) thereof, immediately after the

words "at the Local Council’s administrative offices" there shall

be added the words "unless provided otherwise by a directive of

the Director after consultation with the Association only in

exceptional circumstances"; and

(b) immediately after sub-article (3) thereof, as

amended, there shall be added the following new sub-article (4)

"(4) All meetings held by any Local Council not in

the Council’s administrative office during the pandemic

period, as from the declaration of the National State of

Emergency due to Health Reasons, shall not be deemed as

Council meetings held against the law.".

Article 49 of the principal Act shall be amended as follows

(a) sub-article (3) thereof shall be substituted by the

following

"(3) The Executive Secretary shall be a public

officer during the performance of his duties, who is chosen

according to those procedures and criteria established by

the Director as approved by the Public Service

Commission, without prejudice to the pool established for

this purpose.";

(b) in sub-article (4) thereof, the word "Minister" shall

be substituted by the word "Director";

(c) sub-article (5) thereof shall be substituted by the

following

"(5) An Executive Secretary may be removed or

transferred from one Council to another or in the

Department in accordance with provisions of sub-article

(6) after the request is evaluated by a board appointed for

such purpose by the Minister. This board shall be a

statutory board of not less than three (3) persons."; and

(d)

sub-article (6) thereof shall be amended as follows

(i) the words "from one Council to another by the

Minister as follows:" shall be substituted by the words "in

accordance with the provisions of sub-article (5) for one of

the following reasons:";

(ii)

its first proviso shall be deleted;

(iii) in its second proviso the word "further" shall be

deleted.

In sub-article (2) of article 70 of the principal Act, the words Amendment of

"date of the meeting." shall be substituted by the words "date of the article

principal Act.

meeting:" and immediately thereafter there shall be added the

following new proviso

"Provided that such meetings may be held otherwise as

provided by a directive of the Director after consultation with the

Association, and this measure shall be taken only in exceptional

circumstances.".

The maps in the Second Schedule to the principal Act of the Amendment of

boundaries of localities 51. Ħal Safi and 67. Żurrieq shall be the

Schedule to the

substituted by the following new maps

principal Act.

Passed by the House of Representatives at Sitting No. 409 of the 9th

December, 2020.

ANĠLU FARRUGIA

Speaker

RAYMOND SCICLUNA

Clerk of the House of Representatives

€0.54