PM asked to investigate MFSA chairman's link to Cayman Islands company, consultant
Prof J.V Bannister.
Labour MP Evarist Bartolo has demanded an inquiry by the prime minister into how the chairman of the Malta Financial Services Authority is a partner in a Cayman Islands company with one of the consultants he appointed for the MFSA.
Speaking in Parliament last night, Mr Bartolo said he was concerned about relationships between the chairman of the MFSA, Prof Joseph Bannister and interests in the Cayman Islands.
He noted that since 2008 the MFSA had paid over €3m in consultancy services, always awarded by direct order in breach of public procedures. Some people were paid €1,000 per hour, although this might be justified in some cases in this sector.
His question, Mr Bartolo said, was whether all the consultants were being appointed with an eye to benefit Malta and its financial centre. The financial centre, he said, had many competent people, but some were sad over some aspects of management.
He noted that the Financial Services Authority in the UK had removed a person, Clive Briault, who was responsible for surveillance of Northern Rock Bank but had been found guilty of systematic failure of duty. And then this same person was awarded a contract by direct order for consultancy services in Malta and has so far been paid more than €500,000. The contract was awarded by Mr Bannister.
Questions also had to be asked on the repeated appointment of other consultants such as Piero Ugolini and Anthony Fisher. What were the returns for Malta?
What was even more worrying was that among the consultants appointed by direct order by the MFSA, there was one who operated in partnership with the chairman of the MFSA in funds grouped under a large company in the Cayman Islands. This was the same place, Mr Bartolo said, where HSBC allegedly allowed a subsidiary to launder drug runners' money.
Shouldn't it be worrying, Mr Bartolo asked, that the chairman of the MFSA was partner with one of the consultants he appointed by direct order, in a big company with huge assets and branches in Italy, Germany and the UK?
This consultant had so far been paid more than €460,000 by the MFSA. Was this a conflict of interest? Did the prime minister know that the chairman of the MFSA was partner with a consultant he appointed by direct order in a company in the Cayman Islands, with the reputation that it had?
Wasn't he endangering the reputation of Malta's financial services centre.
It was important, Mr Bartolo said, that the prime minister, as the person who appointed Mr Bannister to investigate his involvement in the Cayman Islands and whether it amounted to a conflict of interest. Certainly, the provisions of conflict of interest which applied to all workers of the MFSA should also apply to the chairman.
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42 Comments
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matthew tanti
Nov 15th 2012, 10:07
as usual the usual people jump to conclusions before hearing the other side of the story.
Peter Murray
Nov 14th 2012, 14:51
even if an investigation is sanctioned and eventually undertaken can we be reliably assured that it would be conducted by a totally independent body without any vested interests (This is a rhetorical question by the way as I can see the wagons with hieb tal -hieb onboard starting to circle now)).
K. Vella II
Nov 14th 2012, 13:14
If only we had more parliamentarians like Evarist Bartolo!
Eve Axiaq
Nov 14th 2012, 12:41
Too much smoke!
Mr Alexander Azzopardi
Nov 14th 2012, 12:14
€1000 per hour!! tista tfehmuni x jghamel dan? Lanqas Obama m ghanudu paga bhal din.
MHUX CAJTA EHH 1000 per hour li pratikament jekk taqalu 1 euro qas huwa worthit li jigbora.
ALFRED BRIFFA
Nov 14th 2012, 11:27
Ftit ftit l-imhuh li qed jghinu lil Gvern prezenti kollha jridu jkissruhom tal-Lejber!
Issa misset ix-xorti (hazina) tas-sur Bannister! Lesti ruhhek ghal xi kalvarju sur Bannister bhal ma diga ghaddew nies bhal Richard Cachia Caruana!! Alla mieghek!
j brincat
Nov 14th 2012, 11:04
Here we still have to define what 'conflict of interest' means!
(jb)
Joseph Cauchi Senior
Nov 14th 2012, 11:02
I find such disclosures very worrying when considering the fact that this may cause more harm than good in the long run, for the MFSA.
Why are such delicate and sensitive matters exposed in a way rather than investigated in a proper and discreet manner as not to rock the Malta-boat; and not perceived as gaining political mileage?
We should never shoot at our own legs!
JC.
joe vella
Nov 14th 2012, 11:58
Mr JC senior, you amaze me, and others!
you must be losing a lot of the pleasures of this world, your vision has a strong tint of blue that distorts all the beautiful images that mother nature graced us with!
Alfred Vassallo
Nov 14th 2012, 12:59
''Why are such delicate and sensitive matters exposed in a way rather than investigated in a proper and discreet manner''
Simple because actually they NEVER are investigated, or otherwise, as you say in a discreet manner but are rather left on the side unless somebody prods the 'powers to be' on.
K. Vella II
Nov 14th 2012, 13:10
"Why are such delicate and sensitive matters exposed in a way rather than investigated in a proper and discreet manner as not to rock the Malta-boat; and not perceived as gaining political mileage?"
Do you trust the Maltese authorities with investigations that are conveniently hushed away? I don't.
Peter Murray
Nov 14th 2012, 14:58
What about the "disclosures" relating to full transparency being revealed and the integrity of a public servant being deemed of paramount importance or do you consider these" delicate and sensitive matters"that should not be"exposed"but investigated in camera -so to speak.This mindset is indicative of how we got in this toxic financial mess and you sound like the banks trying to hide secrets
M Vella
Nov 14th 2012, 10:26
"Some people were paid €1,000 per hour" ......Any vacancies please,I'll come for a fraction of the price and I'll bring along my wife too for free,LOL,Prosit Mr Bartolo you are an asset for our Parliament.
jm busuttil
Nov 14th 2012, 12:39
Mr.Vella I do not think that there would be a problem if you are competent enough in this field to send a CV to the MFSA making sure you get an answer. If not chosen the reason for not being so .
If you do not get a reply if I were you I would go to the press.
I wish you luck and hope to hear that you have be given the job if one arises enjoying € 1000 an hour.
Jan-Wouter Stigter
Nov 14th 2012, 10:24
Small businesses pay a lot of fees to the MFSA for filing of accounts and what not. At the very least this money should be well and wisely spent. Who oversees the Authority?
Peter Murray
Nov 14th 2012, 14:59
no one -as they are the unaccountable elite
Ms.D. Galea
Nov 14th 2012, 15:35
Who oversees the overseers?
william cauchi
Nov 14th 2012, 10:22
So after one day's works, 8 hours at €1000 an hour, total €8000. So some people get in just one day what a lot of workers get in a whole year.
That would be nice, work one day and have a holiday for the other 364 days.
With regards to the rest, so much has been swept under the carpet, does anybody expect to see things to really change?
Amante Reale
Nov 14th 2012, 11:00
> So some people get in just one day what a lot of workers get in a whole year.
8000 euro a year is waaaaaayy below minimum wage.
You should polish up on your maths.
A Camilleri
Nov 14th 2012, 11:29
It's the typically and customar Maltese trait of envy. We think that anyone one can do the job of such specialists. What a nation of envious citizens we are. As soon as someone is paid in line with market rates applicable overseas we jump and pretend that we can do his job for cheaper. that's why you don't earn as much smply because your skills are not worth that much in the market. Period.
Andrej Psaila
Nov 14th 2012, 11:30
Well you can work two days and be well over average joe's annual salary... still the matter is not about the eur 1000 per hour tariff, but the conflict of interest that is so widespread and taken for granted in this country
K. Vella II
Nov 14th 2012, 13:11
@Amante Reale:
It doesn't make his point any weaker.
Eddy Privitera
Nov 14th 2012, 10:14
I am sure that those who ran world-famous international financial and banking institutions, such as Lehman Brothers etc.., had also enjoyed a good reputation before their collapse !
Fran Abela
Nov 14th 2012, 14:23
Mr. Privitera - are you really Maltese because you seem to take infinite pleasure in anything that goes wrong in Malta. I am not saying that certain issues should not be investigated, but please please do not hang out the dirty linen for all and sundry to see. If there is definite proof of this allegation by Evarist Bartolo, by all means it should be investigated.
Carmel Farrugia
Nov 14th 2012, 09:32
This is a sector that employs thousands of people in Malta at highly paid rates. Mr Bartolo should pay attention and keep the rocking of the boat to a minimum. Whatever wrong that has been done Profs Bannister enjoys an extremely good reputation in the international financial industry and he is an asset to Malta. All these innuendos and suspicions damage Malta and this industry.
Sarah Grech (Zebbug)
Nov 14th 2012, 09:49
Really cannot make any sense of your reasoning....no matter how many times I read your comment.
Lawrence Fenech
Nov 14th 2012, 09:50
@Carmel.
What are you a relative?
Victor Laiviera
Nov 14th 2012, 09:50
Sweeping the dust under the carpet so a not to "rock the boat" is very unwise and short sighted. The accumulation of dust will eventuallly explode in your face (to mix a metaphor).
Franco Attard Trevisan
Nov 14th 2012, 09:52
Transparency my friend ... that's all he is asking for. Just assuring the rules are being followed by everybody
joe vella
Nov 14th 2012, 10:36
mr farrugia, I feel very sorry for you, can you really believe what you are saying?
the organisation and people who promoted the la vallette property fund all carried a good reputation, we trusted them, see where we found ourselves?
do you want a repeat?
so please if people like varist are pointing to a potential problem, yes please go ahead and rock the boat even harder if need be
Franco Abela
Nov 14th 2012, 10:36
SO WHAT? Does reputation gives right for abuse in general?
Amante Reale
Nov 14th 2012, 11:01
Keep the rocking of the boat to a minimum?
Oh dear.
Do you feel your precious little status quo getting shaken? This must be making you feel so sad.
Michael Farrugia
Nov 14th 2012, 11:53
Apparently someone is tired of rocking boats. I am confused .. so it is ok to go all out to damage Malta's largest financial institution .. but not ok to ask for transparency at regulator level of the same industry. So what exactly do you want to protect??
K. Vella II
Nov 14th 2012, 13:13
Jimmy Savile was an asset to the charities under his patronage. And yet!
Lawrence Fenech
Nov 14th 2012, 09:30
Brovo Evarist. A very detailed research, I am sure that the maltese population is interested in this, you are the only one to bring it up into the open even though you are on the outside. We now wait for results.
Karl Cucciardi
Nov 14th 2012, 10:22
Yes we are !!!!
J Martinelli
Nov 14th 2012, 14:54
Definitely NOT a fan of Varist Bartolo, but I thank him for beating Franco Debono to it!
However 'rocking the boat' doesn't do much for foreign investment, which will be of a major interest to a probable Labour administration shortly. Would it not have been much better if the concern was referred privately to the Auditor General or Ombudsman for sorting out rather than grandstanding?
Michael Borg
Nov 14th 2012, 09:30
it s all about money !!!! u il poplu i hallas taxxi not stop !!! even to park a car issa
Brian Gatt
Nov 14th 2012, 09:21
1000 Eur / hour......Any Vacancies please, i ll come for half that price and work twice as hard!!!!
joe vella
Nov 14th 2012, 09:19
Evarist Bartolo was the only parliamentarian who directly and personally took up the cause of the jilted investors of the La Vallette Property Fund
the position that MFSA took all along was dubious and has been questioned several times, by many people
I am glad to see he is still working on the implications of this fiasco and other matters associated with it
KEEP IT UP VARIST we will remember!
Peter Murray
Nov 14th 2012, 09:05
Conflict of interest -what's that I hear our law-makers and public servants ask ?As it is manifestly apparent b tthat they have no knowledge of this term or its actual delineation?Looks like a classic case of the hieb tal-hieb and the old school chums/work associates connection syndrome.
Jonathan Camilleri
Nov 14th 2012, 09:02
hot issue :)
Please choose the reason of your report below: