A judge today rejected a request by the Nationalist Party to stop the Planning Authority from removing its billboards, pending a final decision by another court.
The dispute revolves around a legal notice issued on April 3 which restricted political billboards to three months before an election. Any other political billboards put up outside those months would be subject to a licence fee of €1,500 per billboard, as in the case for commercial billboards.
The PN had argued that the move was meant to muzzle it and stifle its freedom of expression. On May 10, a court had upheld the PN’s request for an injunction, but the party failed to follow it up with a court case within the established 20-day period.
As a result, the Planning Authority and Transport Malta managed to have the injunction revoked.
This prompted the PN to file an application for a fresh injunction and a separate application whereby it requested the court to prevent the authorities from removing the billboards pending the outcome of its new request for a fresh injunction.
In its decision today the court, presided by Mr Justice Joseph R Micallef, noted that a temporary measure could only be granted if there was an...
