The Nationalist Party has proposed harsher punishments for those convicted of vilifying, assaulting or threatening a public official.
The aim of a Private Member’s Bill tabled in Parliament is zero tolerance towards the assault of public officials such as doctors, nurses, teachers, police officers and soldiers.
The Bill was presented by Opposition spokesman on home affairs Jason Azzopardi, who said the Opposition was proposing ways of getting the message across: that this type of crime was “not on” and would be “severely punished”.
He is proposing that the punishment for those found guilty of vilifying public officials should increase by two grades. Those found guilty of assaulting or threatening public officials should also spend more time in jail.
This type of crime is not on and will be severely punished
In the Bill, the minimum prison sentence for this type of crime increases from four to six months while the maximum goes up from two to three years.
Those found guilty of attacking, vilifying or resisting public officials with the use of a weapon should spend between a year and four years behind bars.
Dr Azzopardi is also proposing that those convicted for any of these crimes should not be entitled to probation, a suspended sentence, a conditional discharge or a lesser punishment than the minimum prescribed by law. However, the court would still have the faculty to fine the accused.
In a second motion given to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Anġlu Farrugia, the Nationalist Party proposed changes to a legal notice published by the Government last month on the setting up of a special appeals board to preside over cases related to the proposed gas plant in Marsaxlokk.
The Opposition claims that this appeals board does not give any aggrieved party proper redress except to file an appeal in court, from which all it could win is a refund of the money paid to file that case.
Moreover, it said this system does not give the aggrieved party a fair hearing.
The board has the power to annul the whole process and basically choose whom to award the contract to.
The PN proposes the legal notice on the power station’s appeal board should mirror the legal notice on the public contracts review board, PN deputy leader Mario de Marco explained.
Instead, he said, appeals are to be filed before the “tried and tested” Public Procurement Regulations Appeals Board, which has been in operation for several years.
MP Tonio Fenech said that energy minister Konrad Mizzi had “moved the goalposts” with this energy appeals board, granting less power to the appellant.