Court upholds PN billboard injunction

The First Hall of the Civil Court has upheld the PN's request for an injunction preventing the authorities from forcing political parties to pay commercial advertising rates outside election time.

Judge Jacqueline Padovani Grima gave a ruling on the injunction this morning.

The Planning Authority and Transport Malta had objected to the injunction, saying the prejudice that could be suffered was "not small."

Delighted that the Court stopped @JosephMuscat_JM from removing our billboards. Freedom of expression wins.

— Simon Busuttil (@SimonBusuttil) May 10, 2016

The PN, represented in court by MP Jason Azzopardi, described the new licence fee levied on political billboards as an attempt by the government to muzzle the opposition.

He argued, that the government had effectively imposed a €30,000 tax on the Opposition which had "coincidentally" been introduced as the Panama Papers scandal rocked the Labour government.

The opposition is contesting the legality of a legal notice published on March 29, which prohibits the erection of political billboards up till three months before an election, requiring the payment of an annual licence fee of €1,500 per billboard to Transport Malta, in default.