Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/992522
4 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 10 JUNE 2018 NEWS MATTHEW VELLA THE new chief executive officer of the Malta Financial Services Authority, Joseph Cuschieri, will be paid a salary of €115,000 – making him one of Malta's highest paid public officials. Cuschieri took over the reins of the MFSA after long-time chairman Prof. Joseph Bannis- ter left his posting earlier this year, with Prof. John Mamo in- stalled as chairman. Bannister was previously earning a salary of €82,105, while Cuschieri – who was for- merly executive chairman of the Malta Gaming Authority – was earning €114,000. Cuschieri will also be paid a 20% performance bonus in a one-time lump sum, which would earn him an additional €23,000 a year, while his salary will increase annually by 15% of his performance bonus. His contract is for a definite period of five years, which means his salary will climb to almost €130,000 in 2022 on the basis of a full performance bo- nus – which would also mean a total of €122,000 in cash bo- nuses over five years. Additionally, the MFSA will reimburse Cuschieri any travel- ling and subsistence fees in the course of his duties, as well as professional membership fees, hospitality expenses, training course fees and other out-of- pocket expenses as a result of his employment or attendance at meetings. Cuschieri will also get a health insurance scheme, together with a serviced vehicle and use of a smartphone and tablet. Cuschieri's contract also in- cludes a 'revolving door' clause that will prevent him from be- ing employed or directly en- gaged as a self-employed per- son by anybody or any financial services entity licensed by the MFSA. Cuschieri has also bound him- self from making any public statement concerning his em- ployment at the MFSA for a pe- riod of two years following the termination. Cuschieri is also prohibited from giving any services to any person or entity engaged in business that is directly or indi- rectly regulated by the MFSA. In the past, MFSA chairman Joseph Bannister was under se- vere criticism for having taken up a non-executive directorship in a company based in the Brit- ish Virgin Islands (BVI) in 2007, while he was already chairman of the Malta Financial Services Authority. Leaked papers from the Para- dise Papers cited Prof. Bannister as being part of "management" in ACP Special Situations 2, a company that took up a share- holding in a Russian mining venture suspected of siphoning off public funds from the Euro- pean Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). Ban- nister had played down any po- tential conflict of interest, say- ing there would be a conflict if the company had a connection with Malta. Despite criticism from such Labour ministers as Evarist Bar- tolo, Bannister was still retained by the Labour government up- on its election in 2013, and had his five-year contract renewed in 2014. Bartolo had already called for Bannister's resigna- tion in 2012 over his director- ships of investment funds based in the Cayman Islands. Throughout his 25-year ca- reer, Joseph Cuschieri held various finance roles, among them chief commercial officer at Vodafone Malta, COO at the Malta Communications Au- thority, and senior consultant with EY. MFSA boss Joseph Cuschieri on €115,000 salary KARL AZZOPARDI THE Democratic Party (PD) yesterday presented the Speak- er of the House with a motion for the setting up of a perma- nent committee for the surveil- lance of entities regulating the financial services and gaming sectors. Party leader Anthony Butti- gieg, as accompanied by dep- uty leader Timothy Alden and PD MP Godfrey Farrugia, said that such a committee would ensure increased transpar- ency and accountability. "We can show entities outside the country that we are insisting on regulation and transparency in these sectors," Buttigieg said. He said Malta did not require any form of direct EU interven- tion because the country had the necessary human resources and capabilities to ensure ac- countability. The committee's roles would include the power to investi- gate and analyse the capital expenditure of the relevant au- thorities in the field. It would also have the role of investigat- ing and implementing prac- tices of good governance both internally and externally while also looking to strengthen co- operation and collaboration with international entities. Furthermore, high-ranking officials within entities falling under the committee's pur- view, would be called up to de- clare and explain information regarding their work. Apart from its watchdog role, the committee would analyse the impact of decisions taken by the government, the EU and other relevant institutions, and recommend action when the relevant authority does not act in line with international re- quirements. To ensure proper enforce- ment, the committee would undertake regular inspections and site visits to guarantee ef- fective and professional super- vision. The bill comes in the wake of the PD members' meeting with MEP Ana Gomes last week, with Buttigieg saying both sec- tors would benefit from the added credibility of having par- liamentary oversight. The PD said that it was proposing that a majority of the committee's members be from the govern- ment side, with a chairperson from the Opposition benches. "Malta needs to take a quan- tum leap in good governance," Buttigieg said. "This is long overdue, especially in the cur- rent situation where there is local and international concern regarding the management of our affairs, particularly of key economic sectors." He said that rather than sim- ply criticising and gaining po- litical capital from the current situation, PD was proposing a set of concrete proposals it be- lieved would benefit the nation as a whole. "This is not a half-baked solu- tion… This is an excellent op- portunity for the parties in par- liament to work hand in hand towards a collective result. This is an example of a positive Op- position that proposes a posi- tive alternate," Farrugia said. PD wants parliamentary scrutiny of financial and gaming regulators