Brussels appoints new head for its Malta office

The head of the Department of Information, Martin Bugelli, will be taking over as head of the European Commission’s office in Malta as from tomorrow.

The official announcement of Mr Bugelli’s five-year appointment was made yesterday in Brussels. He will be taking over from Dr Joanna Drake, who was the first Maltese to be appointed to such a post following Malta’s accession to the EU.

After her resignation last year to take up a position as director general with the Commission in Brussels, the post has been filled temporarily by a funtionaire from Brussels.

Mr Bugelli was selected by the Commission following a competition which included some 50 applicants, including top civil service employees such as ambassadors and permanent secretaries. The job comes with a €70,000 net salary and various other perks.

In its official announcement, the Commission said Mr Bugelli, currently government spokesman and Director General of Information, Local Government and Public Consultation at the Office of the Prime Minister, has had a long and varied career within the Maltese public service and in a European context.

He graduated as a speech therapist in 1981 and began his career with the public service in the Health Department. He holds a degree in English from the University of London as well as a Master of Arts degree in mass communication from the University of Leicester.

Mr Bugelli has board experience in a government communication role as he served in various ministries, particularly under former Education Minister Ugo Mifsud Bonnici.

From 2004 to 2008, Mr Bugelli also served in Brussels at the Maltese Permanent Representation as attaché and later as head of cabinet.

The Commission said Mr Bugelli’s broad experience in communication matters would be an asset for the Commission Representation to play a key role in communicating with Maltese citizens and the media as well as to boost relations with national local authorities and any other civil society stakeholders.