The Nationalist Party yesterday tabled a motion for the ap-pointment of a commissioner and the creation of a Parliamentary Committee to ensure that pub-lic officers, including politi-cians, adhered to the highest ethical standards.
Aimed at raising standards in the public sphere, the motion was tabled following recent controversies involving ministers and parliamentary secretaries in the new Labour Government, Opposition Leader Simon Busuttil said.
He said the most “classic examples” were those of ministers and parliamentary secretaries who made false declarations about their assets.
He noted that more recently, Energy Minister Konrad Mizzi’s wife, Sai Mizzi Liang, was appointed by Malta Enterprise as Malta’s envoy to Asia.
Dr Busuttil said the Opposition was not just criticising the incidents but tabling something positive to address them so that they would not reoccur.
“Members of Parliament can only be considered honourable if their own behaviour is honourable,” Dr Busuttil said soon after handing a copy of the motion to Speaker Anġlu Farrugia.
The motion proposes the appointment of a Commissioner of Standards in Public Service and a Standing Committee of the House to assist him in his work.
Dr Busuttil said that every MP and every public officer had a duty to observe the highest standards of behaviour.
He said the motion was open to discussion, especially with regard to the powers this committee and commissioner should have.
He noted that Prime Minister Joseph Muscat had himself said that it was time for the Code of Ethics of ministers and parliamentary secretaries to be revised, but he had not indicated how and why.
He said the new Commissioner should be an officer of Parliament, like the Ombudsman and the Auditor General. His appointment should be by resolution backed by two-thirds of the members of the House and he should function in an independent manner.
Dr Busuttil said his role would be to promote the highest standards of behaviour including integrity, accountability, objectivity, transparency and responsibility.
The House Committee of Standards, which ought to be presided over by the Speaker, should have equal representation from both sides of the House.
There was nothing controversial about this motion, Dr Busuttil said, expressing hope it would have the backing of the Labour Party’s representatives in Parliament.
A code of ethics for parliamentarians was already in place but there was not structure to enforce it.
This was the purpose of the proposal, he said. When asked, Dr Busuttil said he did not exclude that the Commissioner could look into cases retroactively and would be able to investigate cases from previous legislatures.