The proposed Bill 205 has gone through the 2nd reading stage of the legislative process, which opened on Monday 31st May 2021 by Hon. Minister Dr Ian Borg at the Parliament of Malta. Further remarks were made on the plenary sessions of 1st June and 2nd June 2021, by the Shadow Minister Hon. Perit Toni Bezzina and Opposition Spokesperson Hon. Inġ. Ryan Callus respectively.

The Chamber of Engineers has followed these sessions closely and has drawn the clips of these interventions from the Parliament of Malta’s media archive and is reproducing them below for the benefit of the engineering community and members of the the general public interested in the engineering profession.

In light of such remarks, the Chamber notes that the legal provisions in the proposed amendments are being gauged as; consolidating the role and status of the Inġinier and Inġiniera in Malta, protecting the Engineering Profession Warrant and aligning to the EU directives concerned. The Chamber highlights that it has been following the drafting of the amendments to Cap. 321 since their inception. Following expressions of dissent, consultation with engineers and engagement in talks with the Engineering Profession Board, the Chamber of Engineers has taken a central role to ensure that the amendments which are tabled to Parliament are sufficiently robust and secure to benefit our profession and society at large.

The Chamber clarifies that, media reports implying that no form of consultation took place regarding these proposed amendments, are factually incorrect. The Chamber of Engineers has been consulted from a drafting stage in 2019, and after highlighting disagreements with the Board on the provisions in the initial draft, the Chamber had engaged with members and obtained recommendations which were of fundamental input for the re-drafting of the proposed amendments. Thereafter, in August 2020, the Chamber issued a press release stating that its proposals were adopted by the Board. Throughout this entire process, the Chamber kept and continues to keep its membership abreast with developments.

In this regard, the Chamber encourages members of the profession to follow all remarks accurately through the clips made available below.

The Chamber would like to underline once again that, the issue of the eligibility of MCAST students for the engineering warrant, is completely seperate, and is not to be confused, with the issue of the proposed amendments in Bill 205. The Chamber of Engineers remains a stakeholder in the review process being carried out by ASIIN which has led to the launch of the Pre-Warrant Qualification Course and the ongoing accreditation of the MCAST B.Eng. Programmes. The focus of this process remains to ensure a level playing field for eligibility towards the warrant and safeguard the standards of the profession.
The legislative process of Bill 205 is now expected to acceed to committee stage. The Chamber of Engineers had already written to the Clerk of the House and the Chairpersons of the Committees for the Consideration of Bills to express interest to participate and contribute in the discussions related to the Bill and will continue to pursue this process closely.

Remarks from Hon. Minister Dr Ian Borg – Plenary Session – 31st May 2021

Remarks from Hon. Perit Toni Bezzina – Plenary Session – 1st June 2021

Remarks from Hon. Inġ. Ryan Callus – Plenary Session – 2nd June 2021