Police seize driving licences

A number of driving licences have been seized by the police following investigations into Transport Malta's licensing department, which led to three employees being suspended last month.

According to the authority, which for years has been haunted by accusations of irregularities, progress was made on "all matters" raised in a report by a private audit firm and a letter from Transport Minister Austin Gatt. Dr Gatt had sent a strongly-worded letter with instructions to chairman Mark Portelli following the audit report which he found "deeply" concerning.

One of his orders was to employ a person by the end of June with experience in banking procedures and checks and balances to introduce the necessary procedures and monitor implementation.

A ministry spokesman yesterday replied to questions sent a week ago by The Times, saying the person had been employed but adding that no other details could be divulged.

Asked whether anyone had been called to resit the driving test, the spokesman said: "We are informed the police have indeed seized a number of licences and are currently investigating others we have found to be questionable. No one can drive without a licence and to obtain a new licence, one must sit for the appropriate tests."

The investigation was prompted by allegations made by Labour MP Joe Mizzi, which led to a police investigation.

Transport Malta did not say how many licences were seized.

The report by audit firm PriceWaterhouseCoopers, which was passed on to the police, had found some people "fraudulently benefitted" from the addition of a new licence category without having sat the appropriate test.

The auditors tested 127 cases reported since 2001 and found that, while in 42 cases people had sat for the driving exam, 85 cases "remained questionable". A sample used to test pre-2001 licence holders found 75 per cent of cases to be "suspect". Transport Malta said it would have to verify all pre-2001 extensions, case by case, and ask all identified drivers to either prove their eligibility or else sit for the relevant exam.

The auditors found that 12.5 per cent of licences between 2007 and 2009 are suspected to have been issued "free of charge".

An investigation into misappropriation through cancellation of receipts found another 12.5 per cent of cases "suspect".

In 2006, the transport regulator was hit by a scandal that saw two driving instructors being convicted of bribery. Two authority officials were convicted of taking bribes the following year.