Standards committee unanimously endorses report that found ministers breached ethics
Parliament’s Standards Committee unanimously endorses report which found Clayton Bartolo and Clint Camilleri abused their position when giving the Tourism Minister’s then-girlfriend a well-paid consultancy job
Parliament’s Standards Committee has unanimously endorsed a report which found Clayton Bartolo and Clint Camilleri abused their position when giving the Tourism Minister’s then-girlfriend a well-paid consultancy job.
Committee members will be debating and deciding on the sanctions for the two ministers in the next committee sitting this Wednesday. Tourism Minister Clayton Bartolo and Gozo Minister Clint Camilleri have until the next sitting to send any submissions from their end.
Speaker Anglu Farrugia, in his opening remarks, said the committee members should read the commissioner’s recommendations for the funds to be reimbursed “very clearly”, saying he felt he should make the such comments.
The two Opposition MPs on the committee – Mark Anthony Sammut and Ryan Callus – insisted the Standards Commissioner former chief justice Joseph Azzopardi be called to testify in front of the committee, so that any question marks on the funds paid or Amanda Muscat’s work be clarified.
The report
According to an ethics investigation, Clayton Bartolo’s girlfriend, later to become wife, was given an “unjustified” salary increase as a policy consultant, a job she was not qualified for.
The investigation by the Standards Commissioner revealed that Amanda Muscat was promoted from private secretary to policy consultant at the tourism ministry despite not having specialised knowledge or qualifications to perform the new role.
She kept the same role of policy consultant with an even higher expertise allowance when joining the Gozo ministry after her job at the tourism ministry was terminated. The transfer to the Gozo ministry happened after she developed a romantic relationship with Bartolo.
Nonetheless, the investigation found that although Muscat was supposed to be working with and for the Gozo ministry, she continued acting as the tourism minister’s private secretary.
The Standards Commissioner found that Muscat penned no reports and gave no written opinions or advice as a consultant to either of the ministers, and her role was effectively one of coordinator between entities and stakeholders, apart from private secretary.
The mere change in her job nomenclature meant that Muscat benefitted from a substantial increase in her salary – which as policy consultant was pegged at the highest permitted level (Scale 3) – and given an expertise allowance of €15,000.
The expertise allowance was increased to €20,000 with no explanation why, when Muscat was subsequently engaged by the Gozo ministry.
The investigation kicked off on a request filed by Arnold Cassola, following a report by The Shift News on Muscat’s unorthodox work arrangements.
The Standards Commissioner refuted the claim that Muscat was paid for work she did not do but noted that on the basis of the work arrangements afforded to her, she was “effectively given a substantial wage increase that was not justified”.
The Standards Commissioner noted that although the manual regulating the engagement of persons of trust with the public service defines the role of policy consultant as a position of trust, this did not mean engaging someone who was unqualified for the job.
“Those appointed to roles financed by public funds, including persons of trust, are obliged to fulfil the duties pertaining to their role, and whoever appoints them is obliged to choose persons capable to fulfil those duties,” the commissioner said.
Aftermath of the report
After the report was published, Bartolo offered what could only be described as a half-hearted apology.
“While I do not agree with all that the Standards Commissioner wrote I accept the report. If there are instances where I may have slipped, with all humility I apologise,” the Tourism Minister wrote on his Facebook page. Bartolo said he will be waiting for the outcome of the discussion that will be held in parliament’s Standards Committee.
The minister insisted that he will remain focused on his work to boost the tourism sector, effectively dismissing calls for his resignation.
Similarly, Gozo Minister Clint Camilleri wrote on his Facebook that he took note of the Standard Commissioner’s report and will await the outcome of the discussion in the parliamentary committee.
Camilleri offered no apology, insisting that the minister’s wife had worked on several projects when engaged with his ministry.
The PN on Monday organised a protest outside parliament, with Opposition leader Bernard Grech slamming the Prime Minister for his lack of action, saying he was being cornered by his own ministers.
“We have a weak Prime Minister—weak with his Ministers, weak in government, weak within his party,” he told supporters.
Grech said people “have once again witnessed daylight robbery.”
“She was given a job she wasn’t qualified for. They made her a consultant despite lacking the necessary qualifications. This is theft from us, theft from you. Theft from anyone who wakes up in the morning to work. Theft from those who paid tax hoping for a decent pension. Theft from self-employed individuals and business owners who risk their money to grow the economy. And simply because she is the partner of a Minister, she was handed a well-paid job she didn’t meet the criteria for,” he said.
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