A four-star hotel was inaugurated by the Prime Minster last June even though it was not in possession of the required licence to operate, Times of Malta is informed.

H Hotel, part of the Hugo Hotels group run by entertainment mogul Luke Chetcuti, was inaugurated by Dr Muscat during a glitzy ceremony five months ago, on June 8.

Several members of his Cabinet, including deputy Prime Minister Chris Fearne and Tourism Minister Konrad Mizzi, also attended the launch of the hotel located near St George’s Bay. Since then, the hotel has been accommodating guests but sources say it is operating without the obligatory full licence issued by the Malta Tourism Authority.

The hotel is not listed on the “public list of active licence holders” published regularly by the MTA and updated last on November 4.

Despite several approaches by Times of Malta, the Office of the Prime Minister, the MTA and Mr Chetcuti have repeatedly failed to produce the necessary operating licence certificate issued by the MTA.

The hotel is also attempting to sanction various illegalities related to the extension of the hotel complex, which the Planning Authority is recommending for refusal. These include a commercial outlet, a pool and a large roadside LED screen. A final decision is scheduled for next month.

Tourism industry sources said that according to law, the MTA can only issue a full operating licence for tourism accommodation premises once all the PA approvals are obtained. It is not known whether a temporary licence, valid for three months, has been issued after the hotel’s inauguration by Dr Muscat.

The OPM did not reply to direct questions about the hotel inauguration in the absence of a valid operating licence and the date when such a certificate might have been issued, if ever.

A spokesman said that a Tourism Compliance Certificate was first issued by the MTA in November 2014 and a second approval to amend the application was made in April 2016.

Prime Minister accepted invite

“Other approvals were granted by the Planning Authority and the Food Safety Unit within the Health Authorities,” he said.

“The hotel is also compliant with the legal standards set out in the Tourism Accommodation Establishments Regulations.”

The OPM spokesman acknowledged that the hotel still has some pending irregularities and underlined that Dr Muscat’s presence should not be considered as approval.

“The Prime Minister had received an invitation by the local private investors to attend an inauguration. Like any other similar occasions, whenever schedule availability permits, the Prime Minister accepted the invitation,” he said.

“Quite naturally, his presence in no way means that any project can do without any pending approvals, that in this case, were related to some structural changes which the Prime Minister was not made aware of,” the spokesman said.

Luke Chetcuti (right) looking down on St George’s Bay.

The tourism industry insiders pointed out that the compliance certificates mentioned by the OPM have nothing to do with the operation of the hotel but only with its development application process.

“This is not a green light to operate a hotel as that is a separate licence,” a source said.

According to the Tourism Accommodation Establishments Regulations “the granting of a Tourism Compliance Certificate…shall not exonerate the applicant from obtaining a licence”.

The law, which regulates the tourism industry, states that whoever operates a hotel without a licence is infringing the law and liable to fines which increase considerably after three months.

H Hotel management has not replied to questions about whether the hotel has a licence and to state when it was issued.

Mr Chetcuti, the major shareholder of the hotel, has also failed to reply to questions. He did not return several phone calls or messages left by Times of Malta.

Mr Chetcuti made headlines last month when he appeared in footage filmed by a French TV crew discussing his conversation with Economy Minister Chris Cardona about taking over a part of St George’s Bay public beach.

Dr Cardona dismissed the claims made in the footage that he had texted Tourism Minister Konrad Mizzi, appealing for him to “help Hugo’s as they always helped us”.