The tourism minister has defended Johann Grech's hefty pay raise, saying the film commissioner has expanded the Maltese film industry and created jobs. 

The film industry has spent €500 million in Malta since Grech took over as film commissioner, Clayton Bartolo claimed.

In comparison, €180 million were spent in Malta in the five years before that, he said. 

"Where it comes to the film commissioner and anyone else working in government, I don't just consider what they are paid, but I also consider what they are bringing to the country," Bartolo said. 

"If we have someone bringing record results for the industry year-on-year, then it is wise to have people of this calibre leading the film industry," Bartolo said. 

Grech saw his yearly pay more than double to €150,000 last year after the film commissioner saw a whopping €90,000 salary increase in 2023. He earned €60,000 a year in 2020. 

A Freedom of Information request by The Shift showed that apart from a €115,000 basic annual salary, Grech also receives a €11,500 'disturbance allowance', €10,000 in paid 'expenses', a fully expensed mobile phone and a fully expensed car.

Grech's tenure has been plagued by accusations of reckless spending, an overly generous subsidy for foreign productions and a hefty fee paid to British comedian David Walliams to host the Malta Film Awards. The film commission's claims of the contribution to the economy has also been repeatedly questioned by experts. 

Asked what merited more than doubling Grech's salary, Bartolo said: "I always consider results; this is not a question of giving a contract because you have sympathy towards a person but because they bring results for our country".

He said during the Nationalist Party's tenure in government, an official was appointed CEO of the Planning Authority and given a €100,000 salary even though he had no experience in the field. 

Asked what experience Grech had in the film industry when he was first given the role in 2018, the minister replied: "Let's let the results speak for themselves; those are the biggest certificates that can be given to Johann Grech, the film commission and the tourism ministry."

Since then, Grech has gained experience in the industry, Bartolo said.