OPM brand report on head of tax compliance unit as ‘outright lie’

A report claiming that the finance ministry is resisting pressure from the Office of the Prime Minister to replace the current head of the tax compliance unit with an applicant “known for his open support to Labour” has been branded as an “outright lie”.

In a statement, the Office of the Prime Minister said a report by The Sunday Times of Malta lacked credibility as it resorted to unnamed sources to perpetrate a conjecture.

On Sunday, the Sunday Times of Malta claimed that the finance ministry is resisting a bid by the OPM to replace the head of the Tax Compliance Unit, which is investigating Konrad Mizzi and Keith Schembri over their revelations about their offshore companies.

Entitled ‘Attempt to replace head of tax compliance unit’, the report says the Office of the Prime Minister wants to take advantage of the fact that the three-year contract of the current head of the TCU, Tarcisio Scicluna, is up for renewal.

The newspaper claimed that the finance ministry wants to replace Scicluna’s contract and is resisting pressure to replace him, as it does not want to compromise investigations. On the other hand, the OPM is purported to be backing an applicant known for his support of Labour.

The OPM said that Scicluna – who was appointed in 2011 - is currently at the end of his three-year definite contract, which is due to expire in November 2016.

In a statement, the OPM said it was standard practice that the head of the TCU had a three-year definite contract.

“The process follows the Public Administration Act and the Public Service Commission procedures which have been in place for years. This is a regular process which everyone in a headship position (director upwards) undergoes regularly,” it said.

“The Sunday Times of Malta did not in any way seek comments from the Office of the Prime Minister. It resorts to unnamed sources to perpetrate a conjecture. This only continues to undermine the credibility of the story,” it said.