MALTA

Malta is a unicameral parliamentary republic. The unicameral House of Representatives (Kamra tad-Deputati) is composed of 65 members, elected by a system of proportional representation for a five-year term. The head of state is the President, elected by the members of the parliament, also for a five-year term. The president appoints the head of government, the Prime Minister.

Malta is a unitary country with two tiers of local government since the 2019 Local Government Reform, which introduced a new subnational government level. The local councils were established in Malta in 1993 through the Local Councils Act. A new chapter, entirely dedicated to local governments, was added to the 2001 Maltese Constitution, namely Chapter XA. This chapter was amended with the 2019 reform to update the concept of local government, now composed of two elected levels, regional and local. A new sub-article 115A (2) was added to specify that each region will be managed by a regional council, which will “include a number of local councils as determined by the law in force from time to time”. However, there is still no explicit recognition of local self-government in the text.

The Local Councils Act is the main piece of legislation regarding the establishment, operation and organisation of subnational governments. It established local councils as statutory local government authorities at the municipal level, having a distinct legal personality, provided an exhaustive list of their functions and the powers of the central government to carry out supervision and control over them. The Local Councils Act is supported by nine “schedules”, which provide further details on subnational government functioning (e.g. municipal associations, financial regulations, local council procedures, etc.). The Local Councils Act was substantially revised in 1999, 2005 and in 2009 (Act No. XVI), as part of the broader 2009 Local Government Reform. The 2009 reform provided for the creation of five regional committees, composed of representatives from the local councils located in each region and chaired by a Chairman elected by the Councillors of the relevant municipality. Their responsibilities, which were limited, were devolved or delegated by the central government or by the local councils of the region.

In 2019, the Local Councils Act was significantly amended, along with the 2019 Local Government Reform, and renamed the “Local Government Act” in recognition of the importance of the concept of local government. The reform induced large changes in terms of territorial organisation, effective as of 2021. One of the major changes was the replacement of the five regional committees by six regional councils, granted with larger powers and resources to carry out their functions (in particular in waste management). The reform also increased the responsibilities of local councils in several sectors, notably social protection and education, and strengthened human resources in both regional and local councils. However, the reform does not address the issue regarding subnational governments’ financial autonomy.

Regional councils ensure the co-ordination of their policies with several Ministries and Departments, while the regional council of Gozo coordinates with the Ministry for Gozo and the Gozo Regional Development Authority, in order to avoid duplication of functions. The regional President also plays a key role in the co-ordination of policies with local councils.

TERRITORIAL ORGANISATION
MUNICIPAL LEVEL	INTERMEDIATE LEVEL	REGIONAL LEVEL	TOTAL NUMBER OF SNGs (2021)
68 local councils (kunsilli lokali)		6 regional councils (kunsilli reġjonali)
Average municipal size: 7 590 inhabitants
68		6	74

OVERALL DESCRIPTION: Malta is the smallest EU Member State in terms of surface area and population, although it is the most densely populated. Malta is an archipelago of seven islands but only the three largest are inhabited: Malta, Gozo and Comino. Almost the entire population lives in urban areas. High disparities exist between the island of Malta and those of Gozo and Comino, the former comprising 93.3% of the population.

REGIONAL LEVEL: In 2021, six regions (kunsilli reġjonali) have been established to replace the five former regional committees (kumitat reġjonali), Six regional councils have been created rather than five in order to ensure a more equitable distribution of local councils within each region (11 on average, with an exception of 14 in Gozo).

The regional councils are the regional government’s deliberative bodies. They are made up of the mayors (or representatives of the mayors) of the local councils of the region, which are elected for five-year mandates. They also comprise an executive secretary (segretarju ezekuttiv), which is the regional council’s head of finances and administration, and a President (reġjonali), which is elected by direct universal suffrage, using a proportional representation system, for a five-year legislature. The President is not allowed to retain office in a local council. This second tier of subnational government has been granted with specific functions from the central government and the allocation of additional resources to be able to effectively perform its functions.

MUNICIPAL LEVEL: At the municipal level, Malta is composed of 68 local councils (Kunsilli Lokali), of which 54 local councils in Malta and 14 in the island of Gozo. Each local council is composed of councillors elected by the residents of the municipality for a five-year term. The number of councillors in each council depends on its population (from five councillors for populations of up to 4 999 inhabitants, to 13 councillors for populations higher than 20 000). The total number of councillors in 2019 was 464. The local council is headed by a mayor (sindku) for the same duration, with a limit of three mandates. The last local elections were held in May 2019, with the next being planned for May 2024. The mayor is the political representative of the local council. The executive, administrative and financial head of the council is the executive secretary who is designated by the local council for three years.

Municipalities show high disparities in terms of demographic size. They range from 244 inhabitants in Mdina to 31 789 in San Pawl il-Bahar, with an average size of around 7 600 inhabitants and a median size of 4 500 inhabitants. 14.7% of local councils have fewer than 2 000 inhabitants and about half (52.9%) of local councils have less than 5 000 inhabitants. Only four cities have more than 20 000 inhabitants (Birkirkara, Sliema, Mosta and San Pawl Il-Baħar). The capital city, the city of Valletta, is the political, economic and cultural centre of the country. However, it is not the most populated as a local council (5 859 inhabitants). Its functional urban area, which includes Northern Harbour and Southern Harbour, is much larger (256 500 inhabitants). La Valetta does not have special constitutional or legal status compared to other local councils.

HORIZONTAL COOPERATION: No mechanisms of horizontal cooperation are developed in Malta. However, two associations of local government exist in Malta to promote the common interests of local councils and represent them on international bodies: (i) the Local Councils Association (LCA) and (ii) the National Association of Local Councils’ Executive Secretaries (ANSEK).

Municipal responsibilities are relatively limited although they have been gradually extended since 1993. According to Part IV of the Local Councils Act, local councils have a definite list of functions. Decentralised services encompass mainly the delivery of local public services, culture and recreation and management of public spaces, as well as the administration of property, enforcement of regulations in several sectors and the provision of e-government services. Art. 33 (3) of the Local Councils Act stipulates that the central government may also gradually devolve any functions to local councils if it considers it feasible, starting with a small number of local councils as a test group. In June 2009, a “Code of Good Practice for Local Government” was issued with respect to local governance, primarily aimed at assisting councillors to provide the best service and promoting transparency and inclusivity. Local councils’ responsibilities have also been reinforced in 2019 in the fields of environment, sport, innovation, education, culture, etc. to bring the decision-making closer to the citizens.

Along with the 2019 reform, regional councils have been allocated more functions: waste management, assistance to local councils (notably on how to manage EU funds), sports, education, school and research. They are also in charge of collecting information about abandoned public properties and sites and cooperating with the police and the Local Enforcement Systems Agency (LESA).

Main responsibility sectors and sub-sectors
SECTORS AND SUB-SECTORS	Municipal level	Regional level
1. General public services (administration)	Internal administration; Commerce licenses and permits (delegated); Support to citizens with regards to their rights (transport, communications, taxation)	Assistance to local councils (notably EU funds management)
2. Public order and safety	Local courts	Cooperation with the police and LESA
3. Economic affairs / transports	Promotion of entrepreneurship (delegated); Maintenance of road infrastructure and road signs
4. Environment protection	Maintenance of public gardens/parks; Protection of the natural environment (delegated); Embellishment of localities	Waste collection and management
5. Housing and community amenities	Maintenance and cleaning of public areas; Urban planning and development; Public property and bus shelters (delegated); Restoration, design or alteration of the facade of buildings	Data collection on abandoned government properties and sites; Management of zones of housing estates
6. Health		Management of health clinics
7. Culture & Recreation	Maintenance of children’s playgrounds, sport, culture or other leisure centres; Local public libraries (delegated); Safeguard of local identity (delegated); Assistance to local artists, musicians and athletes (delegated); Organisation of cultural and sport activities (delegated)	Sport activities (together with local councils); Maintenance of monuments (excluding designated national monuments)
8. Education		Research sponsorship; School premises (ensuring services after school hours)
9. Social Welfare		Coordination and assistance for organisations in the social sphere

Scope of fiscal data: local councils, regional councils, and Association of Local Councils.

SNA 2008

Availability of fiscal data: High

Quality/reliability of fiscal data: High

GENERAL INTRODUCTION: The Local Councils Act, now renamed the Local Government Act, and the 2001 Constitutional amendments provide the framework for subnational government finance. Municipalities have very low revenue-generating powers. Municipalities in Malta are currently unable to levy or collect local taxes and charges. Their own revenues are generated entirely from tariffs and fees. Therefore, they are heavily dependent on government grants, which limits their capacity to effectively manage their expenditure (over which they have little decision making-power). The 2019 Local government Reform does not address the issue of subnational governments’ financing. For the newly established regional council, the reform provides direct financial allocation to allow them to perform their functions. The below sections do not include data on the new regional councils as they have been implemented in 2021, while the data covers the year 2020.

Subnational government expenditure by economic classification
	Dollars PPP / inhabitant	% GDP	% general government	% subnational government
Total expenditure	210	0.5%	1.1%	100.0%
Inc. current expenditure	169	0.4%	1.0%	80.5%
Compensation of employees	45	0.1%	0.9%	21.4%
Intermediate consumption	124	0.3%	3.2%	59.0%
Social expenditure	0	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%
Subsidies and current transfers	0	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%
Financial charges	0	0.0%	0.1%	0.2%
Others	0	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%
Incl. capital expenditure	41	0.1%	1.7%	19.5%
Capital transfers	0	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%
Direct investment (or GFCF)	41	0.1%	2.1%	19.5%

EXPENDITURE: Subnational government spending ratios in Malta are the lowest among EU countries and well below the EU27 average (18.3% of GDP and 34.3% of public expenditure in 2020). Municipalities have very few spending responsibilities, which is reflected in a low level of subnational staff expenditure as a share of public expenditure and subnational government expenditure (compared to EU average of 53.6%% and 32.1% respectively in 2020). This is also the result of legislation that ties the maximum number of local council employees to the size of its population. According to the 2019 reform, they will have more autonomy with regard to the number of employees to recruit in the future. The bulk of subnational government spending is dedicated to intermediate consumption (59.0%). Most expenditures are regulated and approved by the central government and the House of Representatives, through allocation provisions in the annual budget. Spending power of subnational governments is thus very restricted.

DIRECT INVESTMENT: Subnational government investment remains very limited as a share of public investment and GDP, well below the EU27 average (1.8% of GDP and 54.4% of public investment). However, investment represented 19.5% of subnational government expenditure in 2020, above the EU27 average (9.9% in 2020). Most subnational government investments are dedicated to the maintenance of roads and transport infrastructure and the rest is spent on general public services. Some local councils are engaged in research and development on policies related to sustainable development and environmental issues. Local councils may enter into public-private partnerships (PPPs) to finance investment, with the approval of the central government, but this is not a common practice given their small role in public investment.

Subnational government expenditure by functional classification
	Dollars PPP / inhabitant	% GDP	% general government	% subnational government
Total expenditure by economic function	220	0.5%	-	100.0%
1. General public services	139	0.3%	5.1%	63.1%
2. Defence	0	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%
3. Security and public order	8	0.0%	1.4%	3.6%
4. Economic affairs/transports	14	0.0%	0.6%	6.4%
5. Environmental protection	50	0.1%	7.4%	22.5%
6. Housing and community amenities	0	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%
7. Health	0	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%
8. Recreation, culture and religion	10	0.0%	1.9%	4.4%
9. Education	0	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%
10. Social protection	0.0	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%

The responsibilities of local councils are very narrow in Malta, focusing on a few areas. The main category of subnational government spending is general public services. Administrative tasks represented 63.1% of their expenditure in 2019, followed by environmental protection (22.5%) (primarily waste management, landscaping and maintenance of parks and gardens) and economic affairs and transport (6.4%) (maintenance and upkeep of existing establishments, roads and facilities). In general, expenditure for each function is pre-determined and factored into the grant allocated to the local council. Therefore, they have no room for manoeuvre for the use of funds. Municipalities have no spending power regarding housing and community amenities, health, education and social protection.

Subnational government revenue by category
	Dollars PPP / inhabitant	% GDP	% general government	% subnational government
Total revenue	236	0.6%	1.5%	100.0%
Tax revenue	0	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%
Grants and subsidies	221	0.5%	-	93.4%
Tariffs and fees	16	0.0%	-	6.6%
Income from assets	0	0.0%	-	0.0%
Other revenues	0	0.0%	-	0.0%

OVERALL DESCRIPTION: As for expenditure, the share of subnational government revenue in public revenue and GDP in Malta is the lowest among EU countries (34.3% and 18.3% respectively on EU27 average in 2020). In addition, local councils have very limited fiscal autonomy. Almost all subnational government funding comes from central government transfers. Grants and subsidies accounted for 93.4% of subnational government revenue in 2020, to be compared to 46.6% in the EU27. Local councils are not able to levy or collect local taxes and charges, according to the Local Government Act.

TAX REVENUE: The Local Government Act does not make reference to tax collection. As a result, local councils have no tax revenue (neither own-source nor shared). Regional councils do not have tax revenue powers either.

GRANTS AND SUBSIDIES: Local councils’ revenue mainly comes from the allocation of the annual grant to each local council by the Minister of Finance under the Appropriation Act. It is dedicated to the functions of local councils, which covers landscaping and maintenance of parks and gardens, road maintenance, and waste management. These central government transfers to local councils are organised under Article 55 of the Local Government Act. The amount appropriated is based on a complex formula specified in the Eighth Schedule of the Local Government Act. It is based on each council’s characteristics (e.g. the number of properties within the council, the number of councillors, the length of roads, park areas, etc.) and on estimations of current costs for the delivery of statutory functions. In 2015, a new fund was introduced to finance local cultural projects, and another fund was announced in the Annual Budget 2015 that would aim to assist local councils to implement capital projects. Along with the 2019 reform, regional councils will be allocated grants from a fund of more than EUR 3 million to compensate for the transfer of their new responsibilities.

OTHER REVENUE: Local councils are allowed to increase their own revenue by charging fees for the services they provide and from specific municipal activities (e.g. advertisement on street furniture, the administration of the Council property, use of council facilities, etc.). Nevertheless, revenue from tariffs and fees as a share of subnational revenue remains below the EU average (6.6% vs 10.3% in 2020). Local and regional councils do not have property income.

Subnational government fiscal rules and debt
	Dollars PPP / inh.	% GDP	% general government debt	% SNG debt	% SNG financial debt
Total outstanding debt	89	0.2%	0.3%	100.0%	-
Financial debt	11	0.0%	0.0%	12.6%	100.0%
Currency and deposits	0	-	-	0.0%	0.0%
Bonds / debt securities	0	-	-	0.0%	0.0%
Loans	11	-	-	12.6%	100.0%
Insurance pensions	0	-	-	0.0%	-
Other accounts payable	78	-	-	87.4%	-

FISCAL RULES: Through its Minister of Finance and Minister of Local Government, the central government is granted, by the Constitution and other relevant texts, extensive rights and powers to be involved in the conduct of local affairs. Local councils have to submit annual budgets to the central government for indirect supervision and approval. The Monitoring Unit (MU) of the Department for Local Government monitors the financial commitments of local councils, ensuring that they adhere to the financial regulations and procedures outlined in the Local Councils Act of 1993. An additional monitoring function is carried out, as required by law, by the local government auditors, who are appointed by the auditor general. The National Audit Office, a fully autonomous entity, is in charge of the annual auditing of all local councils.

DEBT: According to the Local Government Act, local councils cannot borrow (or lend) funds, without the express written consent of the central government. When authorised, funding is supposed to come from the allocation of supplementary funds by central government and not by borrowing. The tight subnational borrowing and lending rules explain the low level of subnational debt, particularly in comparison to the EU27 average (13.9% of GDP and 15.4% of public debt in 2020). It is made up of other accounts payable (87.4%) and financial debt (“Maastricht debt”) for the remaining part. Financial debt is negligible (0.04% of public debt in 2020).

TERRITORIAL MANAGEMENT OF THE CRISIS: Given the lack of subnational government involvement in healthcare, the COVID-19 crisis has been managed centrally by the Superintendent of Public Health, acting under the Ministry of Health. The allocation of responsibilities between the levels of governments was not modified during the pandemic. The acquisition of protective and medical equipment, vaccines, etc. remained under the responsibility of the Ministry of Health in order to ensure appropriate planning and accountability of use.

The “state of emergency” was declared in March 2020, which provided the Superintendent with extraordinary powers to pass legislation and directives within the framework of the Public Health Act (e.g. social distancing measures, lockdowns). The Superintendent had to make recommendations on public health actions to the Cabinet Interministerial Committee, which is chaired by the Prime Minister and the Minister for Health. Her role was also to lead the COVID-19 Response Team, established to respond to public health needs. In turn, the Superintendent was advised on international and local developments by a Senior Advisory Group, based in the Ministry of Health,

EMERGENCY MEASURES TO COPE WITH THE CRISIS AT THE DIFFERENT LEVELS OF GOVERNMENT: Subnational government emergency measures were not identified. By contrast, the central government issued a financial package to support the economy of the country, by providing assistance to the most vulnerable sectors and households during the pandemic. Measures included the reduction of business costs through an extension of a Tax Deferral Scheme, subsidies for utility bills and commercial rents, a reduction of fuel prices and a refund of commercial licenses. They also aimed to stimulate domestic demand by providing a EUR 100 voucher to residents to be spent locally (hotels, restaurants, retail outlets, etc.), tax refunds and in-work benefit scheme for low-income households. Additionally, the stamp-duty on residential property transactions was decreased, in addition to the tax rate for property sales. Finally, direct support to companies was granted by the central government through a wage supplement scheme, IT support and export credit guarantee scheme for new export markets. Allocations to associations and nursing homes were also provided to mitigate the effect of the pandemic. By contrast, given the limited financial autonomy of subnational governments on revenue and expenditure, the impact of the pandemic on subnational finances was limited and thus, no specific support from the central government to subnational governments was implemented.

IMPACTS OF THE CRISIS ON SUBNATIONAL GOVERNMENT FINANCE: The pandemic largely impacted local economies, especially since Malta heavily relies on tourism and on international trade. However, due to the dimension of the country, no significant disparities among territories have been recorded, and subnational governments were not significantly affected by the COVID-19 crisis given their low responsibilities and fiscal autonomy.

At the subnational level, revenue decreased by 5.3% in 2020 compared to 2019, due to lower tariffs and fees received by the local councils and lower grants and subsidies from the central government, which focused its support on companies and vulnerable households. Similarly, subnational spending decreased by 5.5% between 2019 and 2020, mostly due to a drop of investment and of intermediate consumption during lockdowns. Subnational debt remained almost unchanged in 2020.

ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL STIMULUS PLANS: As part of the NextGenerationEU, Malta established a national Recovery and Resilience plan, with a focus on green and digital transformation. Malta’s plan is structured around six pillars: (i) renovation of buildings, (ii) decarbonisation of transport, (iii) education, (iv) digitisation, (v) health and (vi) strengthening the institutional framework. The plan comprises a mix of structural reforms and strategic investment projects for the economic recovery of the country. Accordingly, the country should receive EUR 316 million from the EU Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF) funds, in the form of grants. No loan has been requested so far. In addition, the central government established a 2021-2027 partnership agreement, under the new EU Cohesion Policy programme which set strategic objectives over the period. This agreement complements the funding that will be received under the NextGenerationEU to further support Malta’s recovery from the pandemic through investment.