The last decade has seen a worrying collapse in public standards in Malta. The so-called ‘oilgate’ scandals, the discovery of ministers holding undeclared Swiss bank accounts, the Panama Papers and the eye-watering revelations from the Caruana Galizia inquiries involving ministers and senior government officials have rocked public trust in politicians and in the institutions meant to hold them to account.
There have been a few glimmers of light brightening the darkened skies. The Ombudsman and the National Audit Office are leading examples of the assiduous practice of institutional independence – unfortunately with little executive clout – that should be far more widespread than it is.
Another is the more recently established Commission for Standards in Public Life, which has been dealing firmly and fairly with ministerial lapses in behaviour. The most high-profile of these has been Commissioner George Hyzler’s handling of allegations against former prime minister Joseph Muscat.
The former prime minister was accused of breaches of the ministerial code of ethics involving gifts he received from the alleged mastermind of the assassination of Daphne Caruana Galizia, and an undeclared €21,000 weekend flight to Dubai enjoyed by Muscat and his family.
On the first, Muscat was found guilty of breaching MPs’ code of ethics by accepting and not declaring three expensive bottles of wine as a birthday present last year from the notorious Yorgen Fenech. On the second, Muscat was exonerated purely on a technicality: the person who paid for the family weekend in Dubai did “not have a direct influence in influencing local legislation”.
Although Hyzler did not explicitly condemn Muscat’s actions, it is clear that these incidents have implicitly exposed the lacunae that riddle the MPs’ code of conduct. The commissioner is determined to close existing loopholes in the way gifts of any kind are recorded.
Hyzler said the new rules will include provisions on what is acceptable, introduce thresholds, and, importantly, propose the setting up of a register of interests that will include a section on gifts, benefits and hospitality, together with a time limit for registration.
The aim will be to oblige ministers and parliamentary secretaries to declare all gifts over a certain value that are not prohibited, meaning that either the gifts are refused or they are declared in the register. The revised code and guidelines are expected to be presented before the end of the month.
A ministerial code should set out clearly the principles underpinning the standards of conduct to be expected of ministers and parliamentary secretaries: probity, integrity, impartiality, accountability, transparency and honesty. They are to behave in a way that upholds the highest standards of propriety, including that no conflict arises, or appears to arise, between their public duties and their private interests. Ministers are under a paramount duty to comply with the law, to uphold the administration of justice and to protect the integrity of public life.
These ethical principles should be tied irrevocably to the three pillars that are crucial to our entire system of democratic government: an unwavering commitment to the rule of law; a constant adherence to parliament’s needs and procedures; and an unshakable obligation to uphold democratic values.
There is a crucial need to rebuild public trust in politics. Ethics in public life are vital to keeping the entire system of government clean and decent. The blame for Malta’s turbulence today reflects a lax public ethical culture over many years. That must now change.
The fact that the Parliamentary Committee for Standards has endorsed the commissioner’s findings on Fenech’s gifts is a step in the right direction.