Opposition moves House motion against ministerial pay raise

The Opposition has presented a motion in Parliament expressing disapproval at the way ministers' compensation has been raised, describing the Cabinet's decision as 'insensitive, arbitrary and lacking transparency'.

The motion, presented by Opposition whip Joe Mizzi, notes that the Cabinet on May 5, 2008, decided that the Prime Minister, Ministers and Parliamentary Secretaries, among others, were to start being paid an MP's honorarium along with their ministerial salary.

It was also decided that the Speaker and the Leader of the Opposition would also be eligible for the honorarium along with the salaries of their posts.

A letter by the Cabinet Secretary of the Ministry of Finance, dated May 7, 2008, said that the allowances and honoraria were to be given to the Prime Minister, the Leader of the Opposition and the Speaker with effect from March 11, 2008.

The Prime Minister, Ministers and Parliamentary Secretaries had since been receiving the compensation as decided on May 5, with modifications to the honoraria announced on January 19, 2011 after a public outcry. This compensation also included an increase in allowances compared to the previous legislature.

The motion expresses concern that the honoraria being given to the Prime Minister, Ministers and Parliamentary Secretaries was not being issued from the funds allocated to Parliament, as required by regulation, but from other funds 'without parliamentary approval'.

It notes that the Leader of the Opposition had declared that he would transfer his raise to charity, but the raise has not been issued to him.

The motion says the government's attitude, particularly the attitude of the Ministry of Finance, reflected a lack of respect to the House.

In the light of the current economic situation and the resultant hardship on ordinary families , the motion calls on the House to disapprove the Cabinet's "insensitive attitude, arbitrary actions and the lack of transparency".