The Accountancy Board – the island’s watchdog against wrongdoing by accountants and auditors – was left unconstituted for almost six months and was only appointed this week after questions were raised by the Times of Malta.
The board, which falls under the remit of Finance Minister Edward Scicluna, ended its mandate last October. However, the new members of the board were only appointed last Tuesday.
Sources close to the Finance Ministry yesterday confirmed to the Times of Malta that when the Panama Papers leaks were publicised, the watchdog could not take action – as it was not constituted.
“The board stopped functioning at the end of October last year. Since then, there was no board and no investigation could be conducted,” a senior government official told this newspaper.
Questions sent to the Finance Minister last month were not answered by the time of writing. However, soon after a reminder was sent earlier this week, the government appointed the board. The Finance Ministry also ignored repeated requests to explain why the accountancy watchdog had been left in a position where it could not function.
The board stopped functioning at the end of October. Since then, there was no board and no investigation could be conducted
Leaks by the Panama Papers name local auditing firm Nexia BT and its sister companies as the main financial interlocutors for advice on the complex overseas financial vehicles set up for Energy Minister Konrad Mizzi and the Prime Minister’s chief of staff, Keith Schembri.
Brian Tonna, one of the main partners of Nexia BT, is also a shareholder in the local arm of Mossack Fonseca, the Panama-based law firm involved in setting up secret companies in Panama.
According to the local angle of the Panama Papers which have emerged so far, a number of Maltese individuals have been named as having financial vehicles in the British Virgin Islands or Panama or trusts in New Zealand. Two of them are close associates of Mr Schembri: Malcolm Scerri, who is currently managing Mr Schembri’s business group Kasco; and Pierre Sladden, a construction contractor who is also in business with Mr Schembri in the film industry.
According to the Panama Papers, Adrian Hillman, the former managing director of Allied Newspapers, also set up a company in the British Virgin Islands at the same time as Mr Schembri. All those mentioned so far in the Panama Papers have one common financial advisor – Nexia BT.