Parliament on Monday approved a controversial anti-deadlock bill that will pave the way for the government to appoint a standards commissioner whom the Opposition does not approve of. MPs voted on party lines. 

It will become a law once it is signed by President George Vella. 

This means that former chief justice Joseph Azzopardi, the government's pick for the job, will likely take on the role when the anti-deadlock mechanism is triggered for the first time in the coming weeks.

Despite the Opposition fiercely disagreeing with Azzopardi's appointment and despite the appointment requiring support from two-thirds of MPs, the anti-deadlock mechanism will allow parliament to still appoint Azzopardi by a simple majority if two initial votes fail to garner a two-thirds majority.

What prompted the bill?

The law compels MPs to appoint a Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards, whose job is to investigate whether politicians and public officials are acting ethically and legally while in public office.

The first standards commissioner - George Hyzler - was appointed in 2018 with the backing of both sides of the house.

That two-thirds rule compels the government and opposition to find common ground and appoint a person who enjoys both parties' trust. But it can also lead to stalemates that are nearly impossible to resolve if both sides are unable to agree on a nominee.

Both sides had agreed on Malta's first standards commissioner, George Hyzler, but have been unable to agree on his successor.

The government has proposed former chief justice Joseph Azzopardi for that role, with retired judge Joseph Zammit McKeon being appointed ombudsman. 

The Nationalist Party opposition did not want Azzopardi as standards commissioner, citing concerns about his efficiency.

Former chief justice Joseph Azzopardi is the Labour government's choice for standards commissioner.

Prime Minister Robert Abela refused to consider any other candidates and instead pressed ahead with introducing the anti-deadlock mechanism into law. 

Opposition Leader Bernard Grech has criticised the mechanism as "undemocratic" and accused Abela of acting like a dictator.

Abela and Labour MPs, on the other hand, argued Azzopardi and McKeon are both eminently qualified for their respective proposed roles and insisted it was Eddie Fenech Adami who had appointed Azzopardi as a judge.

Abela has also argued that the PN itself had called for this sort of mechanism to be introduced for appointments requiring a two-thirds majority. The PN says that is misleading, as its proposal was purely restricted to constitutional posts. 

How will the law work?

The newly introduced mechanism - which, somewhat ironically, only needed a simple majority to be passed - still requires parliament to agree on a new standards commissioner with a two-thirds majority. 

However, if, after a second vote held within seven days of the first, two-thirds of MPs are unable to agree on a name, then the appointment can be made through with a simple majority on the third vote, held within seven days of the second vote.

The law also allows new candidates to be nominated between those second and third votes, presumably to increase the odds of MPs finding common ground and securing a two-thirds majority. 

Parliament requires two-thirds majorities when taking decisions of major consequence, such as amending the constitution or appointing the president or chief justice.

The Council of Europe's Venice Commission, a body of governance experts which advised Malta on how to strengthen its democracy through law, had recommended introducing an anti-deadlock mechanism for the appointment of president. 

It had suggested a mechanism that would function in the same way as that which the government is proposing to introduce for the appointment of standards commissioners.