Ombudsman to investigate Swieqi residents’ complaints on overtourism: Bartolo

Swieqi residents have finally caught the ear of the nation’s highest watchdog. Ombudsman Joseph A. Bartolo announced today that his office will open a formal investigation into complaints that overtourism is “eroding the very fabric” of this once-quiet micro-municipality perched above St Julian’s. The move comes after a petition signed by 412 households—roughly one in four—alleged daily noise levels rivalling Paceville’s main strip, illegal short-let flats mushrooming in family blocks, and pavements so clogged with luggage wheels that “pushchairs have to take the road”.

For years, Swieqi has been marketed abroad as the respectable cousin to its neon neighbour: tree-lined avenues, low-rise villas, the parish church whose bells still strike the Angelus. Yet the same attributes that made it attractive to diplomats and retirees now make it irresistible to budget airlines and Airbnb algorithms. Where once you heard the whirr of a lone ice-cream van, residents say you now wake to the rattle of trolleys at 4 a.m. as tourists trudge downhill to early-bird English-language schools.

“We are not anti-visitor,” insists Marouska Debono, spokesperson for the grassroots group Swieqi Quieter Skies. “My nanna fed British servicemen rabbit stew during the war. Hospitality is in our DNA. But when three adjacent townhouses are converted into 24 self-check-in studios, the postman can’t even find the bell.” Debono’s group submitted 47 sworn affidavits, photographs of overflowing waste skips, and decibel readings taken from children’s bedrooms.

Tourism Minister Clayton Bartolo (no relation to the Ombudsman) told HOT Malta that the government “takes community concerns seriously”, pointing to the newly launched Malta Tourism Quality Mark and a promised crackdown on unlicensed rentals. Yet enforcement remains patchy. Swieqi mayor Noel Muscat says that in 2023 his locality issued 73 fines for illegal conversions; only four were paid. “We need national coordination, not just a sticker scheme,” Muscat argues, noting that most booking platforms still list properties without permit numbers.

The cultural stakes go beyond noise. Swieqi’s emblem, the prickly pear cactus, is no accident: the plant thrives on rocky soil and symbolises resilience. But resilience has limits. Last August, parish priest Fr George Micallef had to cancel the traditional procession of Santa Margerita because tour buses blocked the route. “The band couldn’t turn the corner,” he recalls. “Youngsters ended up streaming the procession on TikTok from a side street. It felt like exile in our own town.”

Language schools, a pillar of Malta’s ELT economy, are caught in the crossfire. Julian Pace, director of Gateway English Academy, insists that 80 % of his students stay with host families in Mellieħa and Gżira. “But the perception is that we’re the problem,” he sighs, showing HOT Malta a spreadsheet of 2024 bookings: 1,200 beds reserved in Swieqi alone. “We follow the rules. The rogue landlords don’t.”

The Ombudsman’s investigation will examine four areas: planning enforcement, waste management, short-let licensing, and residents’ right to “acoustic amenity”. Bartolo’s team can compel documents from the Malta Tourism Authority, Planning Authority, and even booking platforms. While the probe cannot levy fines, its public report—expected by December—often triggers policy shifts. A 2021 Ombudsman report on Paceville policing led to the introduction of specialised district officers.

Back in Swieqi, children chalk hopscotch grids beneath jacaranda trees, unaware that their pavement may soon become policy battleground. Pensioner Mary Vella, who has lived on Triq il-Herba since 1974, offers a wry toast with her afternoon tea: “May the Ombudsman hear what the tourists can’t—our silence.” Whether that silence can be restored without dimming Malta’s brightest economic engine remains the million-euro question.