Outgoing PL president wants return of criminal libel
Ramona Attard stated that the decriminalisation of criminal libel was a mistake, as she called for increased fines for libel convictions
The Labour Party’s outgoing president, Ramona Attard has stated that decriminalising criminal libel was a mistake.
Attard was speaking during her final address as party president at the PL’s general conference. She used her speech to call for unity within the party, and for the party to be “One team against those who want to halt progress in our country.”
Attard spoke about personal attacks and “a new trend of opening investigations on politicians’ family and partners.” She then compared this to European Parliament President Roberta Metsola’s appointment of her brother-in-law as head of cabinet, saying, “But that doesn’t matter.”
“But if a minister’s partner works as a lawyer or social worker as she had studied, we conduct entire investigations.”
Attard then turned her attention to the role of the standard czar. While noting that this office is important, she said that this wasn’t created to create fear within authorities. “How long will we accept investigations with no evidence as if we want this office to be a fishing expedition.”
She questioned whether it was time to revise the Standards in Public Life Act, saying, “Yes to standards, no to abuse and intimidation.”
Attard stated that humanity has left politics, referring to personal attacks and baseless stories with no research behind them. She referred to her own experience when she had to explain why her father was unable to work due to a number of traumas he sufferred while working as a police officer.
“Condemnation is not enough. We must act because we are in government.”
Here, she stated that the decriminalisation of criminal libel was a mistake, calling for increased fines for libel convictions.
Attard also referred to the smear campaign against Chris Fearne allegedly initiated by Steward Healthcare, the company behind the fraudulent hospitals’ concession, calling for investigations and repercussions against those who attempted to smear him.
Speaking about what she plans to do following her departure from the party role, she Attard said she will work towards bringing back humanity in politics.
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