Standards czar George Hyzler mooted for EU Court of Auditors after term expiration

Standards Commissioner George Hyzler could be nominated for the EU’s Court of Auditors, according to a report in the Times of Malta.

Prime Minister Robert Abela was reported to have informed the Labour parliamentary group on Friday about his plans for the nomination, that would see Hyzler replacing Leo Brincat.

Brincat, a former Labour minister is nearing the end of his six-year term on the court of auditors, which expires in September.

Hyzler, who has been serving as the first Standards Commissioner for four years, would be retaining his role until the potential appointment. His parliamentary role carries a maximum four-year tenure.

The Commissioner for Standards in Public Life investigates breaches of ethical standards by ministers, members of Parliament and persons of trust, and contributes to the improvement of standards of behaviour in public life.

Recent investigations have led to the resignations of Justyne Caruana from Minister of Education and Rosianne Cutajar from Parliamentary Secretary for Civil Rights and Reforms.

Labour Party Whip Glenn Bedingfield had even  hit out at Hyzler’s decision to find an ethics breach on the part of minister Carmelo Abela over an advert taken out on newspapers.

In a parliamentary speech, the outspoken MP called out Hyzler for failing to abide by the standards he demands from government, stating he has failed to investigate complaints on government MPs impartially.

He also raised questions on how Hyzler’s consultants and personal driver were employed “under the cloud of corruption”. Hyzler has since denied the claims. Bedingfield continued to hit out at George Hyzler, going as far as saying he was viewing himself as an “emperor”.

The European Court of Auditors is responsible for auditing the European Union’s budget, in terms of revenue and spending. Each EU country gets to nominate one member to sit on the court.

If nominated, Hyzler would be facing a grilling by the European Parliament’s budget committee, with a vote taken in the plenary and final decision taken by the European Council.