Former Labour MEP candidate Charlon Gouder resigned as the private secretary to a parliamentary secretary but was retained as a consultant, boosting his package by €7,000, the Times of Malta has learnt.
Nationalist MP Beppe Fenech Adami last week tabled a question in Parliament asking Economy Minister Chris Cardona for details on Dr Gouder’s new financial package.
Dr Cardona acknowledged that Dr Gouder was now consultant to Competitiveness Parliamentary Secretary Josè Herrera, for whom he used to be private secretary. No further details were given.
A spokesman for Dr Herrera confirmed that Dr Gouder had resigned as private secretary late last year and was appointed as a consultant soon after. The spokesman said the consultancy within the same secretariat carried a higher remuneration compared to what Dr Gouder received in his former, full-time post.
According to government rules, as a private secretary, Dr Gouder was entitled to a maximum salary of €29,133, pegged to scale 5 of the civil service. The consultancy contract he was given puts him in salary scale 3, which carries a remuneration of €36,482.
He is Dr Herrera’s consultant on various projects and initiatives
In addition, Dr Gouder is also entitled to a car allowance of €4,659 a year and a mobile phone allowance of €815 annually.
Dr Herrera’s spokesman would not specify what sort of work Dr Gouder was doing as a consultant. “I can confirm that Dr Gouder started serving as consultant to Dr Herrera as of September 1, 2015.
“He is Dr Herrera’s consultant on various projects and initiatives carried out by the secretariat,” he said.
The spokesman was also asked about the hours put in by Dr Gouder as full-time consultant but no information was forthcoming.
The Times of Malta is informed that since he left his post as private secretary, Dr Gouder started his private legal practice.
A former journalist who worked for the Labour Party’s broadcasting station, Dr Gouder unsuccessfully contested the last MEP election for Labour. He was given a position of trust in Dr Herrera’s private secretariat soon after the March 2013 general election.