Cabinet is set to discuss an overhaul of the way sexual offenders are stopped from working with children, the Times of Malta has learnt.
Education Minister Evarist Bartolo said a system based on that used in the UK could be the best way to close legal gaps that experts feared offenders might be slipping through.
Government sources said the overhaul could include setting up a new authority to administer a comprehensive list of people barred from working with children or vulnerable adults.
It would be different from the protection afforded by the present sex offenders’ register, which bars a person from working with children once they have a criminal conviction.
When it comes to volunteers and other civilians working for the Church, we cannot be certain they will not end up in a sports club, a school or some other environment frequented by children
The head of the Church body tasked with investigating claims of the sexual abuse of minors, Andrew Azzopardi, told The Sunday Times of Malta most of the victims he saw were reluctant to involve the police or the courts, fearing the embarrassment of their ordeal becoming public.
This, he said, could be resulting in a situation where offenders remained in contact with children because they had never been listed on the court register of offenders.
“In the case of priests, we can stop them from having contact with children. However, when it comes to volunteers and other civilians working for the Church, we cannot be certain they will not end up in a sports club, a school or some other environment frequented by children,” Mr Azzopardi said.
His concerns were shared by social workers and professionals who contacted this newspaper saying they had raised the matter with the authorities in recent months.
Mr Bartolo said he was among a number of Cabinet ministers who had met such professionals, including Mr Azzopardi.
He said he had discussed the matter with the ministry’s legal team and had highlighted the UK model, which had a specialised Disclosure and Barring Service, as the best option to fit Malta’s needs.
The UK service operates two lists, one barring a person from working with children and another from working with vulnerable adults. It allows for referrals from an organisation that has a legal duty or power to flag offenders or potential offenders to the service.
Employers are legally obliged to refer people they have dismissed for causing harm to a child or vulnerable adult.
Referrals are also made to the service when an employer or organisation, such as a regulatory body, school or sports club, has concerns that a person has caused harm or poses a future risk of harm. The police and the courts too can refer cases to the service.
People whose names feature on one of the lists can appeal the decision.
The lists are not open to the public, and information is only disclosed to parties on a need-to-know basis.