Consensus on constitutional changes likely

The government and opposition whips are in favour of government employees retaining their job if they are elected to parliament.

As things stand now, public sector employees who become MPs have to give up their job, not only losing a source of income but also being barred from exercising their profession.

On Monday, the House welfare committee, which looks after the needs of current and former MPs, discussed the issue and the general feeling was that the Constitution had to be changed to eliminate this discrimination.

Labour whip Joe Mizzi and Nationalist whip Mario Galea have both personally been through this experience themselves and know what it means to earn less as an MP than they used to earn from full-time jobs.

Both political parties have been insisting that public servants ought to retain their jobs once they become MPs. The issue took a different turn recently, however, when Labour MP Joe Abela referred the matter to the Ombudsman.

Mr Abela, who is a senior occupational therapist, resigned his post following his election to parliament in a casual election in May.

On June 7, he sought permission from the health authorities to carry out duties at the state hospital twice a week on a voluntary basis. His request was refused, in accordance with the provisions of the public service management code.

Under the code, public officers in scales one to five are precluded from standing for parliamentary elections, except for university lecturers.

Public officers on other scales - Mr Abela is on scale 10 - can stand for election but, if successful, they are considered as having resigned from the public service.

Mr Mizzi said when contacted that when he used to work for Deutche Welle, the company wanted to bar him from attending parliamentary sessions because being away disrupted the shift system at the radio station.

The then Speaker, Lawrence Gonzi, had felt the need to write to Deutche Welle, telling the company they would be in breach of privilege if they failed to allow Mr Mizzi to attend parliament.

Mr Mizzi has been an MP since 1987 and whip since 1989.

"Maltese MPs are part-timers and it does not make sense to make them resign from the civil service once they become MPs.

"MPs can barely survive on their parliamentary salary which, with benefits, adds up to just over Lm6,000."

Mr Galea, who holds a degree in nursing, was of like mind, recalling that he, too, had to give up his nursing job when he became an MP, earning much less as a result.

When he was not returned in the 1996 election, Mr Galea realised that, having been away from nursing for five years, he had lost his skills and was not up to date with new equipment and medicine.

"An MP's life is hectic and takes up a lot of time. The salary is barely enough to cope. For example, this month I was invited to four weddings and I had to buy books by the boxful to give as presents when invited to First Holy Communion parties."

Mr Galea added that while in the UK being an MP or a minister helps one to get a job, the situation in Malta is completely the opposite.

"I have applied for jobs with private firms and some of them do not even bother to reply with an acknowledgment," Mr Galea said.

MPs who have had to give up their job include Frederick Azzopardi, Helen D'Amato, Marie Louise Coleiro, Joe Falzon and Silvio Parnis.