The introduction of Local Councils in Malta

Abstract

It has been said that the British economical, social and communal progress achieved through the assiduous hard work and sheer dedication of voluntary civic-minded individuals, was mainly attributed to the British local government system where such progress was intimately related to the process of industrialisation which in the United Kingdom gathered momentum during the 19th Century. This impetus gave the British an ostensible claim of being a model of local government. Indeed it was Jeremy Bentham (1748 - 1832) who invented the term "the local government" On the other hand one could say that the introduction of local government (local council) in 20th Century Malta is the direct consequence of an enlightened social conscience sided by a substantial increase of national wealth, economic growth and to the democratisation process of Christian, democratic and liberal ideas. The implementation process of the local council system besides altering the administration of the country in a most radical way, most probably would revolutionise the economical and social structure of the Maltese islands. Such a concept would be the source through which the ever important features of democracy; decentralisation, devolution and subsidiary be within reach and grasp of the common citizen. But most of all the concept of local council would be instrumental in the development process of a dynamic and healthy democracy.