Frenzy of stop notices as government panics over tower crane inaction

A number of construction projects ground to a halt this week as a result of a government crackdown following a report by The Shift exposing the fact that the authorities held no records on the hundreds of tower cranes operating nationwide.

The report led to an abrupt suspension of works as Justice Minister Jonathan Attard—who oversees construction regulators—tasked the the Building and Construction Agency (BCA) with addressing the issue.

In a sweeping and seemingly uncoordinated response, BCA officials were instructed to issue immediate stop notices wherever they noticed a tower crane being used on a construction site.

Stop notices seen by The Shift ordered legitimate Planning Authority development permit holders to immediately stop work on their construction project “due to no tower crane certification.”

Industry stakeholders who spoke to The Shift said that tens of projects across the island were stopped immediately due to the government’s “panic”.

“Instead of ensuring that all tower cranes are in order by going on site and checking certification, the government stopped all works and then asked for the certification. The level of amateurism of this government and its regulators is unbelievable,” an angry developer told The Shift.

Another added: “First, they do not check and let everyone do as they please. Then, when someone draws their attention to their failure, they panic and make us lose time and money just for them to put their house in order. We have boy scouts, not regulators.”

Responding to parliamentary questions by PN MP Darren Carabott, Minister Attard admitted that the Occupational Health and Safety Authority (OHSA) had no comprehensive record of tower cranes, confirming The Shift’s report.

He revealed that OHSA inspectors only requested certification “if they happened to come across a crane” during a routine site visit—despite past incidents, including fatal accidents.

Attard pledged that the government would now begin compiling a national crane database.

According to rules, developers are not required to obtain a specific permit to erect tower cranes unless they encroach on public land, such as pavements or roads. In such cases, a local council permit—typically granted with minimal scrutiny—is sufficient.