Nationalist backbencher Jean-Pierre Farrugia has upped the ante against the way his government raised politicians’ salaries, going so far as to say he would back a motion to repeal the increases if the Labour Party were to present one.

While stressing he had no intention of destabilising the government, he admitted he “does not intend to vote” with the government if the honorarium issue was put to a vote in Parliament.

Last week he met the Clerk of the House, PN whip David Agius and Speaker Michael Frendo to demand assurances – which were given – that the miscellaneous budget votes would not include the issue of raises.

Asked if he realised that failure to vote with the government on the issue could destabilise it, he said: “I will never threaten the government.”

He added that MPs from both sides of the House, including Labourites, had asked him to back down on his criticism.

“I still believe the government can reverse things,” he added. “This is just about money, after all. No miracles are necessary.”

Dr Farrugia also said he “turned down any rapprochement” with the Labour Party, saying he was “not interested”. He did not elaborate.

However, when asked, he said he “would” back the opposition if it were to present a motion to repeal the raises, adding such a motion “would not threaten the government’s stability”.

The Times also asked Dr Farrugia to react to the justification given by ministers and parliamentary secretaries for pocketing their increases before all other MPs, in 2008. They had told The Times the increases were public knowledge since they were discussed in an article on Malta Today.

MPs’ raise ‘made public’

However, they did not add that the article mentioned the “hush-hush” changes which allowed them to keep their MP’s honorarium rather than the fact that it had been increased and they were already pocketing the amount.

“It only puts their position in a weaker situation. If that’s the only argument they can come up with, then I’m sorry, there is no argument. I didn’t think Malta Today was the oracle or the Government Gazette for that matter,” Dr Farrugia retorted.

He added that the ball was now clearly in the court of the Prime Minister, who last week said during a television programme he would be meeting Dr Farrugia on the matter. Dr Farrugia said no meeting had yet been called.

“A meeting isn’t going to solve the problem. He has to understand that public opinion is completely against these increases,” he said.

Meanwhile, Labour leader Joseph Muscat, who led a protest against the government last week, has not yet said how he would fight the increases which he has criticised so strongly as being insensitive.

Asked whether he would put his money where his mouth was, through a parliamentary motion to repeal the increases, despite the risk of upsetting his own MPs who felt they deserved a raise, his spokesman said: “Parliament was misled over these changes and those who misled Parliament will be held to account in due course.”

Dr Muscat has already renounced his “double salary” and called on his MPs to freely renounce their raises.

When challenged about the fact that the salaries were not being renounced, but donated to charity, the spokesman said: “The forfeiting of income would have been technically problematic and might have led to the sums being put in a limbo. We would rather use them to help those in need.”

Meanwhile, MP and former Prime Minister Alfred Sant is this week expected to call on the Speaker to take action on his letter, sent on January 4, claiming the increases were decided upon “in contempt of Parliament”.

A Labour spokesman confirmed the Speaker had not yet replied to the letter and added that Dr Sant had consulted Dr Muscat about his intention to send such a letter.

Meanwhile, the Nationalist Party yesterday continued to insist that the honorarium “was not increased without the public being informed”.

“The income of all the ministers and parliamentary secretaries is tabled in Parliament every year. The remuneration has been made public and Opposition Whip Joe Mizzi commented in favour of it in an article entitled ‘Ministers deserve a pay rise, Labour Whip’, carried in the Malta Today in December 2008.”

A party spokesman refused to “publicly speculate” about Dr Farrugia’s criticism, reiterating only that ministers deserved to be paid for their separate work as parliamentarians.

(The Times)