Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1140325
maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 10 JULY 2019 7 ANALYSIS salaries lower than scale 6 are concerned. Before the 2004 law, it was the practice for public of- ficers standing for a general election to go out on unpaid leave, pending resignation from the public service. 4. No conflict in the case of MPs who were employees of a statutory body prior to their election, or who are university lectures or hold appointments on the board of the two statutory bodies which require appointment from both sides of the House Since statutory bodies can- not be considered as employ- ment with the government, the employment of MPs with such bodies does not give rise to a conflict, except in cases where a law concerning the relative body is being dis- cussed in Parliament. Likewise, MPs holding uni- versity lecturing posts do not have a conflict, since academia is exempted in the Constitution itself. In accordance with the law, the government and Oppo- sition can each appoint one member as representatives on the Planning Authority and Lands Authority Boards. Since such MPs fulfil a legal role, no conflict arises here either. 5. "Person of trust" ap- pointments, contracts of ser- vice and chairpersonships give rise to concerns and run counter to the Constitution's principles or to the civil serv- ants Code of Ethics Appointments on a "person of trust" basis are made out- side the parameters laid out in Article 110 of the Consti- tution and go against its prin- ciples which disqualify public officers from being members of the House, Hyzler says. On the fact that the 2004 law limits disqualified MPs from civil service roles at sal- ary scales 1 to 5, he says it makes no sense to on the one hand disqualify senior public officers from being MPs, but to then appoint MPs in posi- tions of trust, many of which attract salaries in scales 1 to 5. The widespread appoint- ment of persons of trust jeopardises the principle of protecting the public admin- istration from politicisation, the report notes. Furthermore, even having MPs occupy positions of trust at salary scale 6 or lower is a matter of concern, because the 2004 law was meant to ex- empt serving public officers who are elected as MPs rather than MPs who are engaged as public officers after their election to the House. And, as MPs employed as persons of trust are subject to the public employees' Code of Ethics – which obliges politi- cal neutrality and limits pub- lic comments and political participation – such appoint- ments render them in conflict with the code they are meant to observe. The same reasoning applies to MPs employed on a "con- tract of service basis" and those appointed by the gov- ernment as chairpersons or directors on boards. In the case of the latter, it does not matter whether such boards allow the appointment of MPs, since any appoint- ments will still be subject to the Code of Ethics conse- quently placing the parlia- mentarians in conflict with its provisions. 6. Consultancies are also of concern and ultimately breach the Constitution MPs appointed as legal and other consultants falls within the scope of a prohibition in Article 55 of the Constitution which states that the seat of an MP becomes vacant if she becomes a party to a contract of works with the Maltese government. Article 55, however, also provides that the Speaker can exempt an MP from such pro- vision. Hyzler said that, following legal advice on the matter, he was accepting a restrictive in- terpretation of the definition of "contract of works" to in- clude contracts for services. Therefore, contracts for such consultancies for MPs run counter to the Constitu- tion, Hyzler says. 7. The issue of MPs' inade- quate remuneration needs to be addressed by Parliament with urgency, and could also be framed within the context of giving each MP the op- tion to go full-time or remain part-time Hyzler remarks that, if the reason for giving pub- lic employment or a public appointment to an MP is to compensate for a salary which is too low, a funda- mental problem of discrimi- nation arises, since currently it is mostly MPs on the gov- ernment's own backbenches are given such roles. This also gives government MPs an "unacceptable advan- tage" over Opposition MPs where access to government resources is concerned. Hyzler says he will comment further, at the appropriate time, on the suggestion to grant the option of choosing between being a full-time and part-time MP. Commissioner's report Letter of Intention Mimi Hammad, ID Card number 0415318L (M) declare his intention to register for an Employment Agency licence in accordance to article 23 of the Employment and Training Services Act, 1990 (Act XXVIII of 1990). The activities proposed to be carried out are the following: 1. Recruitment Consultancy. 2. Interviewing, selection and placements of candidates in employment. 3. Recruitment of persons from abroad to employment in Malta or in an EU member state. 4. Recruitment of persons in Malta for employment in Malta or in an EU member state. 5. Advertising of the filling of vacancies. 6. Keeping a register of applicants for employment. The applicant address: 23, 8 th December Victory Street, Zabbar The Office Address of the premises at which the employment agency or employment business is to be carried out: Regus, Tower Business Centre, 2nd floor, Tower Street, Swatar, BKR4013, Malta