Godfrey La Ferla has been appointed Commissioner for the Elderly.

He takes over from Mary Vella who has been in the role for a number of years.

Minister for Active Ageing Jo Etienne Abela thanked Vella for her work and welcomed La Ferla to his new role.

The work of the commissioner is to promote and safeguard the interests of the elderly and create awareness about their rights and dignity in all sectors of society.

La Ferla graduated as a doctor in London in 1977.

He specialised in surgery at Cambridge and Glasgow and in 1982 was elected fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh, Glasgow and England.

He obtained a doctorate in philosophy in 1987 from the University of Glasgow and another in medicine and surgery from the University of Malta.

He was appointed consultant at St Luke’s Hospital in 1991 and later at Mater Dei, a post he held until he retired in 2017. He was chairman of the Department of Surgery between 2001 and 2013.

He became professor of surgery in 2001 and was elected head of department of surgery at the University of Malta in 2001 and dean of the faculty of medicine and surgery in 2003. He holds these positions to date.

In 2017, he was made member of the Order of Merit for his contributions to medicine.