Ta' Cenc... fenced out again

Abstract

Hardly had the Maltese authorities taken the positive decision to include part of Ta' Cenc cliffs as a Natura 2000 site than Victor Borg, owner of the Ta' Cenc hotel, decided to cordon off the area to a non-invasive archaeological trip to the site led by David Trump. This comes hot on the heels of a similar fencing off exercise, complete with police presence, in response to a planned rambling exercise on site (see accompanying photo). Mr Borg's latest action is a faux pas on two counts. Firstly, this is surely a case of bad public relations on his part. Secondly, this could be a sign of things to come, no matter how much Mr Borg tries to reassure us that he will retain public access to the area. As argued by a reader, Roger Flett (The Times, October 24), "their refusal suggests what they intend to do in future with Malta's heritage at Ta' Cenc and public access to it - namely they will make it all a no-go area". The public and the authorities appear to be in total agreement on the need to protect the site - only Mr Borg is missing.