Former Chamber of Commerce president will head health and safety authority

Former Chamber of Commerce president David Xuereb, an architect, will head the Occupational Health and Safety Authority, the government has announced.

Xuereb will be taking over from ex-MP Manuel Mallia, who has since been made Malta’s high commissioner in the UK.

Until March, Xuereb occupied the top post at the Chamber of Commerce and is a director at Malta Enterprise and the Building and Construction Authority.

Government thanked Mallia for his work at the authority over the past few years.

Xuereb’s appointment means that the authority is now headed by someone who is not an MP. The government had changed the law shortly after the 2013 election to allow MPs to be appounted as chair in some of the State authorities. The move was criticised by observers who felt the decision blurred the lines between the executive and legislators who have the role of scrutinising the government.

Under Xuereb’s stewardship, the Chamber of Commerce took a lead role in the area of good governance and put forward recommendations to the government, regulators and its own members.