Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1275149
14 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 2 AUGUST 2020 NEWS Meeting the lobbyists: a transparency register It is a well-known secret that big businesses often test the waters by sounding their gran- diose ideas in private meetings with ministers and government officials. DB group CEO Arthur Gau- ci had revealed in an interview that a decade ago, the idea of a mega-project involving public land at the ITS site "had been floated in a meeting with (for- mer Prime Minister) Gonzi but the then prime minister was only interested if the pro- ject would be developed at the Marsa Menqa." Speculation has been rife on the proximity of the Labour government and its officials to big groups like Henley, Electro- gas and the Malta Developers Association even if it remains unclear whether mere lunches and parties spiced the relation- ship. In a clear indication of how close Yorgen Fenech was to government, the Security Service felt that not inviting him to Joseph Muscat's birth- day party at Girgenti would have alerted him to being un- der the radar of the Caruana Galizia murder investigation. It was Fenech's eventual ar- rest that finally did lift the lid on this proximity between big magnates and politicians. To address this growing con- cern, the new environment minister Aaron Farrugia had anticipated the new code of ethics upon his appointment in January by announcing that he will start publishing a regis- ter of all meetings he has with stakeholders, in a move aimed at promoting transparency and good governance. But so far none of his cabinet colleagues have taken his cue. The new code of ethics would not only make this practice the norm, but lays one important rule: that precludes unofficial meetings like informal lunch meetings: "Meetings with per- sons who have an interest in obtaining permits, authori- zations, concessions or other benefits from the state should be held in an official setting in the presence of officials". Moreover, simply registering the meeting in the transparen- cy register will not be enough, as "minutes of such meetings should also be kept for record and audit purposes". The new code also regulates the grey area of "informal meet- ings, correspondence using unofficial email accounts, and messages by SMS, WhatsApp, and similar applications" deeming any such communica- tion as relevant and obligatory inclusion in the transparency register. And, significantly, minis- ters will no longer be allowed to conduct official business through unofficial email ac- counts, as former PM Joseph Muscat regularly did through his own email account. But the new rules, which ap- ply to MPs and ministers, do not cover the dealings between lobbyists and political parties, which do not fall under the re- mit of the standards commis- sioner. This may create a new avenue for trading in influence, which may make party officials more exposed to pressure from lobbyists. Former PN gener- al secretary Paul Borg Olivier (who back then enjoyed some R&R aboard a magnate's yacht) recently told an inquiry look- ing into the murder of Daphne Caruana Galizia that entrepre- neur Paul Apap Bologna, who was pitching plans to build a gas-fired power station in a meeting held in May 2009, told him "we will do our bit if you do yours". "I asked him what he meant. He replied with a cryp- tic smile," Borg Olivier said, saying the phrase had "trou- bled" him. Curiously, the proposed new rules on lobbying exempt min- isters from having to record meetings with religious groups and political parties if these do not deal with planning permits, zoning or the allocation of money, land or other resourc- es. This means that ministers will not have to record a meet- ing with a religious group lob- bying for harsher laws against abortion. In, out and in again: revolving doors rules Malta has an abundance of cases of former ministers tak- ing up jobs and directorships in the private sector immediately after leaving office. This raises questions on whether their in- side knowledge was a factor in their employment and whether by employing businesses and lobbyists are also trading in in- fluence, by using the clout of ex-politicians to further their influence. The new rules proposed by the standards czar clearly pre- vent ministers from lobbying for the private sector for three years after leaving office. Yet defining what constitutes lobbying may prove elusive. When MaltaToday revealed how Muscat accompanied Steward Healthcare Interna- tional's president Armin Ernst for a meeting with new Prime Minister Abela and Deputy Prime Minister Chris Fearne, Abela insisted that Muscat had not represented Steward in any way but had simply facilitated the meeting with his successor and the healthcare giant. "It's not true that Joseph Muscat was representing Steward be- cause otherwise I would not have accepted to be present for that meeting… I don't feel com- fortable with someone who was prime minister and now a backbencher be- ing present for a meeting of this kind… in fact, he wasn't… his i n v o l v e m e n t was simply as a way of intro- d u c i n g A new code of ethics proposed by Malta's standards czar is set to change the way ministers and MPs conduct their affairs from business lunches with businessmen proposing big projects, to email and Whatsapp messages. But how prepared is the Maltese political class for this upgrade in standards, JAMES DEBONO asks? Gifts, jobs and lunches: new rules, old sins Muscat and Henley: passport chums discussed SLAPP action against pesky journalists Gonzi: former PM drifted into corporate world, giving legitimacy to company boards