The health and safety authority did not inspect the Kordin construction site where Jean Paul Sofia was killed
Sofia public inquiry: No OHSA inspection on site
Its CEO, Mark Gauci, told a public inquiry on Friday that OHSA inspectors were not qualified to assess construction standards.
Gauci said that inspectors had no duty to check on construction sites if no work is found to be in progress.
He said that even if they had visited the Kordin site, they could not have done anything to prevent the tragedy.
The OHSA CEO said that regulations are being amended to empower the authority to stop works until issues are fixed.
Further testimony
Building and Construction Authority CEO Jesmond Muscat revealed that it and Building Industry Consultative Council are to merge.
Mandatory insurance policies for contractors would come with high premiums “nobody would consider to buy”, argued Malta Insurance Association director Adrian Galea.
However, he said that talks about requiring contractors to protect their workers with insurance cover are ongoing.
Malta Chamber of SMEs CEO Abigail Agius Mamo said the chamber is convinced that self-regulation for the sector is not a viable option.
She said the SME chamber’s members want the BCA to have a system allowing it to flag discrepancies in contractors’ reported workloads.
