Updated | PN wants PAC inquiry into Henley contract

The Nationalist Party has asked the Public Accounts Committee to carry out a detailed scrutiny of a contract awarded to international citizenship experts Henley & Partners, as exclusive concessionaires of Malta’s programme of citizenship sale.

Henley won a contract to become the exclusive ‘concessionaires’ of the Individual Investor Programme, before government amended the arrangement to include other authorized agents such as law firms to act as promoters of the IIP and carry out due diligence certification of applicants for naturalisation.

“The home affairs minister has refused to answer two parliamentary questions from the Opposition leader with the excuse that the contract contains confidential or commercially sensitive information,” shadow home affairs minister Jason Azzopardi said.

The PN said it was unacceptable that a foreign, private company is allowed to have in hand “information on national security pertaining to Malta”, but not the Maltese parliament.

In a reaction, the government described the request as an “attack” that coincided with the competing claims of the firm that had tendered unsuccessfully for the concessionaires’ contract, whose lawyers were the legal firm FZD Advocates, of Nationalist MP Francis Zammit Dimech.

“Government respects the PAC’s role, but the Opposition should declare its interests. It is trying to spike the IIP by attacking the international company that was chosen after a competitive and transparent process.”

In October 2013, the home affairs ministry published part of its contract with Henley, which was to be paid a contribution of 4% of the costs of marketing and processing of applications. Should other agents be involved the amount would be split.

Applicants for the IIP must pay a contribution of €650,000, of which 6% goes to Identity Malta, 4% to the concessionaire, and the remaining 90% goes to the “IIP Account”, which money is supposed to be poured into a posterity fund.

To qualify for citizenship, applicants must also provide proof of residence for a period of 12 months “preceding the issuing of a certificate of naturalisation”, acquire a house for €350,000 or lease it for five years at an annual €16,000 rent, and invest in stocks, bonds or special purpose vehicles identified by Identity Malta for a minimum value of €150,000.

Applicants must also have a global health insurance coverage for at least €50,000.