Updated | Lands Authority chief executive Carlo Mifsud steps down

Updated at 11am with minister's statement

Lands Authority CEO Carlo Mifsud has resigned from his post after a mere 16 months and will now help in the creation of a new authority that will regulate the construction sector. 

The reasons for the departure are not clear but in a Facebook post, Infrastructure Minister Ian Borg said Mifsud will be coordinating the setting up of a new authority to bring under one roof the various regulatory functions linked to the construction industry.

Borg thanked Mifsud for his professionalism and said the Lands Authority will be issuing a call for the vacant post. In an official statement released by the Department of Information, the ministry said Peter Mamo was appointed acting CEO until the vacancy is filled. Mamo was the deputy CEO.

Ian Borg

Mifsud’s appointment last year was criticised by Opposition MP Ryan Callus, who said the man, a former Labour Party candidate, was selected over more qualified candidates.

Mifsud, a business administration specialist, was appointed chief executive in February 2017, shortly after the authority’s board was formally set up.

The Lands Authority was created in the summer of 2016, in the aftermath of the Gaffarena scandal that rocked the former government Lands Department.

The authority was created to ensure greater transparency and efficiency in a highly sensitive sector.

Lands Authority chairman Lino Farrugia Sacco could not be immediately reached for comment.

New regulator for building industry

In his statement, Borg said the new regulator for the building industry will act as a single reference point and bring together the functions of the BICC (Building Industry Consultative Council), the Building Regulations Office, the Building Regulations Board and the Stonemasons Board.