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Over €500,000 in consultancies for unrealised White Rocks project
Phantom project that fell through when government could not guarantee green light from MEPA cost €500,000 in legal consultancy and media spin.
5 June 2013, 12:00am
Miriam Dalli
Miriam Dalli
2 min read
An artist's impression of a 500,000 concept...
Over half a million euros for direct orders were paid to the five companies that provided the consultancy services for the failed White Rocks project, MaltaToday has learnt.
Information seen by this newspaper shows that the five companies - auditors KPMG, lawyers Camilleri Preziosi, government investment arm Mimcol and Capita Symonds (UK) and Design Solutions Ltd - received €517,899.84 in payments.
All five companies were appointed by direct order and approved by the finance ministry under the previous administration.
Plans for the €200 million development of the former White Rocks holiday complex into a sports village fell through after talks with a UK-based company stalled. White Rocks Holding Company had launched its project in June 2010 with much pomp, in a press conference hosted by then prime minister Lawrence Gonzi at Castille.
The White Rocks project never materialised. And as the media faced a brick wall in its attempts to question the previous administration over the project, the UK consortium claimed that it had encountered problems from the government in getting a guarantee that MEPA would green-light the sports village.
Meanwhile, the government was requesting consultancy services from the five companies, with the majority of payments being made in 2011 (€172,356.25). In 2013, two companies, KPMG and Camilleri & Preziosi, were paid €6,597.38 and €15,505.20, respectively, for financial and legal assistance on the project.
The project was intended to transform the derelict site in Pembroke into the White Rocks Sports & Leisure Village, offering real estate and facilities for a wide variety of sports. The real estate and commercial components were expected to finance the sports facilities and the operation of the complex during the entire period of concession.
In a recent parliamentary question, Transport and Infrastructure Minister Joe Mizzi announced that the government was considering different uses for the White Rocks area. He commented that a few days before the 9 March election, the Nationalist government had said that the proposed project was not feasible and that contact with the consortium had ceased.
Miriam Dalli joined MaltaToday.com.mt in 2010 becoming assistant editor f...
Emmanuel Mallia •
Wasted taxpayers money, from people who pretend to be Catholics !
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what a waist of money!! the PN could not even finish SMART CITY, so was this another excuse of gonzi to pay the staff at the PN head quarters?
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And during the election campaign Mr Clyde Puli, with a very determined look, tried very hard to convince the electorate that the project was still on the table. Yes on the table of studies commissioned in direct orders paid from our hard earned taxes. I hope that whoever was responsible for this reckless spending of public funds will be asked to answer to the Maltese public
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More money down the drain, if all this money was not spent on so much consultancy that lead to nothing.We could have had a better health service or better care for the elderly... what a sin!
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This warrants and inquiry and a public hearing. The Maltese people deserve to know what exactly they have paid half a million Euro for - God knows the money could have been put to good use elsewhere.
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It's all Labour's fault that we have a mammoth debt and we are in a deficit crisis with the EU. So says ic-cuc malti tic toc Tonio. Another glaring example where our taxes have been thrown down the drain.
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What! What! -Direct Orders - What! What! What! What! - Direct Orders - What! What! What! For What?
