Alicia Bugeja Said was in breach of ethics for turning an official ministry activity into an opportunity for self-promotion, an investigation by the Standards Commissioner has found.

A complaint filed by activist Arnold Cassola alleged that Bugeja Said, a parliamentary secretary who regulates the fisheries sector, had a conflict of interest in organising a "swimming with tuna" event at a tuna ranch this summer. 

Standards Commissioner Joseph Azzopardi dismissed the conflict of interest complaint in a decision published on Friday. He however ruled that Bugeja Said was still in breach of ethics for using her name and political logo in a poster that she had sent to ministry employees informing them about the activity. 

The offending poster.

In shooting down Cassola's conflict of interest argument, the Standards Commissioner said that the only contribution of the fish farm operators to the event was to transport participants from the shore to the fish farms, and to explain how the farms operated. 

The Commissioner further said that the event had been organised as an official teambuilding activity for ministry employees.

Azzopardi decided not to escalate the case further, after Bugeja Said apologised by means of a letter and promised to avoid such occurences in future. 

He reiterated that ministers and parliamentary secretaries who used an official ministry activity for personal self-promotion would be in breach of ethics. 

This is not the first time Bugeja Said has faced conflict of interest accusations. 

Last year, Times of Malta reported how major players in the fisheries industry made campaign contributions to her electoral campaign. 

She Alicia Bugeja received a €1,200 donation from industry giants Azzopardi Fisheries, another €2,500 from fish farm operators Malta Fish Farming and €2,500 from fish sellers Frutti Di Mare.