Clint Camilleri defended his ministry’s €1 million overtime and allowance bill on Monday, saying workers who are entitled to allowances and those who work overtime deserve to receive the remuneration.  

The Gozo Minister was answering a parliamentary question by PN MP Ivan Castillo.  

A national audit report had found that the Gozo ministry paid its employees around €1 million in overtime  that was only vaguely justified and in allowances that could not be verified.

The auditor general had found that in 2021, according to employees' attendance sheets overtime was carried out "habitually, very often with vague justifications given for its requirement", and allowances could not even be verified because the ministry did not provide his office with the required documentation, "notwithstanding reminders sent".  

Following the report’s publication, the Gozo Ministry management defended the system and its officers. Among others, it said that all overtime had been approved and that discrepancies between the pay and the attendance were the result of employees forgetting to sign the attendance sheet.

It also said that officers who exceeded the approved overtime were not paid. 

On Monday Camilleri doubled down on the allowance and overtime costs, saying that those entitled to allowances and those who worked overtime deserve to be paid.  

“This government always gave workers their due,” he said.  

Camilleri said that recommendations from the auditor general needed to be addressed, however, he only admitted to the need of improving paperwork - another shortcoming flagged by the national auditor.

Camilleri skirts Gozo innovation hub questions 

Answering separate questions by PN MP Alex Borg about gaming and digital sector companies, the Gozo minister said that unemployment in Gozo was at an all-time low.

“Only 72 people in Gozo are on the unemployment register,” he said.  

He blamed low interest from digital companies on having only one fibre optic internet cable. 

“We installed the second cable 18 months ago,” he said, adding that "those wanting to operate from Gozo now have peace of mind of a secure connection”. 

Camilleri skirted Borg's question a second time, saying that Malta Enterprise and the Gozo Ministry had implemented several incentives to attract digital companies to the island.  

In November Gozitan PN Mp Chris Said Agius had said that the crammed Gozo courts in Victoria should immediately shift to the Gozo Innovation Hub on the outskirts of Xewkija, at least on a temporary basis.  

The Gozo Innovation Hub remains abandoned, with almost no workers operating from there, according to Said, who was addressing a parliamentary debate.