Judges' pensions hindering recruitment - DeGaetano

The Chief Justice has criticised government's lack of resolve to tackle the judiciary's pension problem, saying it is a "hindrance" to recruitment.

In an interview with The Sunday Times, Chief Justice Vincent DeGaetano accused the executive of "sweeping the issue under the carpet for far too long".

It is understood that the judiciary have for years been asking the government to review the capping mechanism on their pensions.

The conditions of service of the judiciary, he added, were "not at all attractive" making it difficult to find people who would accept appointments as magistrates or judges.

The Chief Justice defended the suspended sentences handed down by judges and magistrates while acknowledging that there have been cases where the suspended sentence was not applied correctly.

"Unfortunately, many people do not bother to read the entire judgment. They rely on what was reported in newspapers," he said.

The Chief Justice refused to discuss the public outcry over the sentences handed down in the VAT fraud cases.

Commenting on the reputation of some judges being more lenient than others, the Chief Justice said: "The perception that there is a wide discrepancy between one judge and another is totally wrong".

ksansone@timesofmalta.com