The Ministry of Home Affairs this evening called for clarity from the Labour Policy about its policy on prisoners' remission.
It was reacting to a press conference by PL home affairs spokesman Michael Falzon, who said prisoners' remission should no longer be automatic.
The Ministry recalled that it had actually proposed legislation where remission would no longer be granted automatically but would be decided by a special Remissions Board which would decide on the basis of prisoners' behaviour.
However, during the debate a debate in Parliament last February, the last speaker for the Opposition, PL deputy leader Anglu Farrugia, insisted that the Opposition wanted remission to remain automatic. He had argued that prisoners should be brought before the board only if they broke regulations.
The ministry said it remained of the view that remission should not be automatic but should be justified – and prisoners on life sentence should not be eligible.
However, since this was a sensitive issue, it did not wish to proceed without the consensus of both sides of the House.
In his press conference, Dr Falzon called for a revamp of the administration of the prisons.
He referred to the release of Charles Muscat (Il-Pips) after serving time for two murder convictions and said that the PL was not against remission, but in this case he could not understand how the prisoner benefited from remission when he was accused of having committed a crime while in jail.
Dr Falzon also noted that although Parliament recently approved a law providing for parole, the legislation had not come into force because the required mechanism was still not in place.
In a wide-ranging press conference, Dr Falzon said a number of 'systematic incidents' and a 'worrying pattern' were a cause of concern in the area of security.
Among them, he said, was the 'disaster' with regard to safety and security in Paceville. The solution there, he said, was not to impose stop leave for policemen, but to deploy officers who were properly trained and motivated.
Dr Falzon said questions were still being asked regarding the 'coincidences' regarding police investigations and charges against Chris Engerer and his son Cyrus, the involvement of (the Prime Minister's Chief of Staff) Edgar Galea Curmi in this case and also Mr Galea Curmi's alleged involvement in another case involving the police just before the last general election.
The general security of the country left much to be desired, Dr Falzon said. Foreign military aircraft were landing in Malta practically every day, purportedly because of technical problems; MPs passwords had been hacked (last year) and two MPs, Jeffrey Pullicino Orlando and Evarist Bartolo, had complained of phone tapping during the referendum campaign.
The country had still not been given a credible explanation about the cause of the explosion heard around Dingli some weeks ago.
Dr Falzon said there was also confusion at the law courts and in the police corps with regard to the access to lawyers which people under investigation should have. As a result, a number of trials were in limbo and some cases could collapse.
Dr Falzon said that the mistake in the charge sheet against a priest in one of the child sex abuse cases was another source of concern, and underlined the need for a prosecution service, which would take over prosecutions from the police.
The Office of the Attorney General, he said, was suffering a brain drain, with many lawyers opting to move into private practice. The government needed to invest in people, the Labour shadow minister said.
The cherry on the cake, he said, was that one person, Claudio Grech, had the data of the country 'in his hands' and he was also involved in political activity (Mr Grech has denied having such access).
Dr Falzon said Mr Grech should have had the decency not to be in such a position.