Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1037099
3 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 7 OCTOBER 2018 NEWS #WeAreOrange Follow our story www.ExpressTrailersEngineering.com Express Trailers Engineering Ltd | Velbro House, Qormi Road, Luqa LQA 9040, MALTA Tel: (+356) 2124 2311 | engineering@expressgroup.com A Return To Our Roots EXPRESS TRAILERS ENGINEERING Solutions, Engineered. We proudly introduce our new company Express Trailers Engineering Ltd, built to focus on your engineering requirements. KURT SANSONE THE Malta Union of Teach- ers has suspended indus- trial action after the govern- ment withdrew the proposed changes to the Education Act and agreed to drop several contentious clauses. The union said yesterday that government agreed to remove clauses in the new law that concerned training and proficiency tests linked to warrants and licences be- fore fresh discussions on the proposed changes can start. The developments were announced by the MUT after an emergency meet- ing of its council yesterday morning that was followed by a meeting with Education Minister Evarist Bartolo and other ministry officials. Bartolo wrote to the Speak- er of the House to withdraw the three Bills that had been presented with changes to the Education Act. The MUT said its actions had safeguarded the profes- sion of educators and in- sisted it would not accept a situation where it would be accused of misinterpreting clauses. The union said that agreement was reached in principle on changes to clauses that concerned qual- ifications, home-schooling, school licences and other as- pects linked to information gathering. Pending issues between the union and the government will also be addressed. The union said that in light of these developments it was withdrawing industrial ac- tion and suspending tomor- row's strike. It reserved the right to resume industrial action if any laws were put forward without consulta- tion. In a statement, the Educa- tion Ministry said that the agreement reached yester- day morning was one by which "everyone won". "We look forward for the start of a new period of work in the best interest of chil- dren, educators, parents and the country," the ministry said, adding that Monday will be a normal school day. Teachers' strike called off after government withdraws contested changes MUT President Marco Bonnici addressing the press after union officials stormed out of a meeting with the Education Ministry KURT SANSONE MALTA'S anti-money laun- dering watchdog is miffed because a detailed action plan it submitted more than two months ago to address shortcomings appears to have been ignored in Brus- sels. The Financial Analysis In- telligence Unit submitted the plan in July, 10 days after the European Banking Au- thority flagged shortcomings over the watchdog's han- dling of Pilatus Bank. But after hearing nothing from the EBA, last week Eu- ropean Justice Commission- er Vera Jourova surprised the Maltese authorities when she told the Financial Times that the Brussels executive will be issuing a binding opinion. Jourova had not raised the subject with Finance Min- ister Edward Scicluna and Parliamentary Secretary Sil- vio Schembri in two separate meetings held a few days be- fore she spoke to the media. Alfred Zammit, deputy di- rector at the FIAU, has told MaltaToday Jourova's state- ments caught the agency by surprise, particularly when she told the FT the FIAU had failed to take on board the EBA's recommendations. "This is not the case be- cause we did take the EBA's recommendations very se- riously and soon after they were released, the FIAU re- viewed its already existing action plan to ensure it fully addresses the issues raised by the EBA," Zammit said. A "granular step-by-step" action plan that included target dates and clear deliv- erables for each of the rec- ommendations made was submitted to the EBA on 25 July, he added. But more than two months later the FIAU only received an acknowledgement of re- ceipt from the EBA. "To date, notwithstanding that more than two months have now passed, and not- withstanding that the FIAU expressed its willingness to cooperate, meet and discuss with the EBA the FIAU's ap- proach in addressing their recommendations, the EBA has not provided any reply nor any feedback whatsoever to the action plan other than an acknowledgment of re- ceipt," Zammit said. He insisted the FIAU was implementing the action plan and intended to provide regular updates to the EBA on the status of its imple- mentation. "The FIAU does not know why Commissioner Jourova told the FT that the FIAU failed to take on board the EBA's recommendations and what assessment the Com- mission may have made to reach its conclusion," Zam- mit said. The European Commission had never been in contact with the FIAU on the matter and never sought informa- tion or explanations from the agency. "The FIAU therefore can- not understand what has led the Commission to pursue this course of action which comes as a complete surprise to us," Zammit said. The FIAU got to know about Jourova's intended course of action last Wednesday from the newspaper report. "The FIAU would have been more than willing to enter into discussions with the EBA and/or the Euro- pean Commission on this matter and believes that the Commission should have taken this up with the FIAU prior to reaching any con- clusions and prior to reveal- ing its intended course of ac- tion to the media," Zammit added. It is understood that Jouro- va's decision to go to the media with such a damning statement without the de- cency of raising the subject with Malta's authorities has angered the government. To date the European Commission Cabinet has not received any recommenda- tions for discussion from Jourova. The case concerns the mis- handling by the FIAU of Pilatus Bank in 2016 when an on-site inspection at the Ta' Xbiex-based bank had flagged serious shortcom- ings. Internal FIAU reports on the bank had been leaked to the Maltese media last year when the Egrant allegations surfaced. Pilatus Bank was thrust in the international media spotlight earlier this year when its owner and chair- person, Ali Sadr Hashem- inejad was arrested in the US and charged with sanctions busting against Iran. It was after Hashemine- jad's arrest that the Malta Financial Services Authority moved in on the bank and appointed an external con- troller while freezing its op- erations. The MFSA is in the process of withdrawing the bank's li- cence. FIAU's action plan ignored in Brussels