Law students have condemned the government’s new bill that will allow it to appoint a standards commissioner without the need for a two-thirds majority in parliament.

“The proposed amendment to the mechanism of appointment of Commissioner for Standards in Public Life reduces public trust within this office by politicising the appointment mechanism of the Commissioner,” Għaqda Studenti tal-Liġi (GħSL) said in a statement issued on Friday.

The anti-deadlock mechanism the bill is introducing would allow MPs to appoint a standards commissioner by a simple majority if two initial votes fail to hit a two-thirds majority.

Each of these votes would have to be held within a week of the previous one, according to the legal text being proposed by the government. 

Malta's first standards commissioner, George Hyzler, was voted into the role in 2018 when both sides were able to come to an agreement.

However, as neither side is able to agree on who will succeed Hyzler, the government has put this bill forward to avoid such stalemate situations.

The proposal has been heavily criticised by the Nationalist Party, which has accused Prime Minister Robert Abela of wanting to force his preferred candidate - former chief justice Joseph Azzopardi - into the post, despite a lack of consensus. 

“Robert Abela doesn’t believe that the role of Standards Commissioner should be occupied by a person with investigative skills as well as possess the determination and moral fibre to uncover and put a stop to the abuse,” the PN said in a press release on Wednesday.

In their statement, law students also expressed concern.

“GħSL asserts that this amendment impedes on the integrity, transparency, and independence of the Office [of Standards Commissioner],” the statement says.

The students' association noted that the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has previously recognised the two-thirds majority required as a “significant element to protect [the Office’s] independence,” and emphasised that the current system also “protects the integrity” of the position.

The OECD recommends that when MPs cannot agree on a candidate, parliament's Judicial Appointments Committee should recommend a nominee to the president. The committee's selection should be binding, the OECD says.

GħSL said the Commissioner for Standards in Public Life “should be made to be seen as a beacon of good governance, and not as a political tool."

“Steamrolling a candidate into office curtails the precept of the Commissioner for Standards in Public Life."