Companies breaching public procurement regulations or the Employment and Industrial Relations Act could be liable to being blacklisted for between six months and two years as a new legal notice comes into effect today.

Since the legal notice was issued, a commercial sanctions tribunal was set up within the Finance Ministry, with the competence to blacklist contractors at fault from participating in government public procurement.

The tribunal is chaired Denise Vella, with Reggie Fava and Richard Matrenza as members.

Finance Minister Edward Scicluna pointed out that this measure, aimed at guaranteeing decent working conditions for all workers, preempted a European directive on public procurement which was yet to come into force.

He said that employers who resorted to precarious employment practices would find an unwavering response from the government.