Standards watchdog slams break from tradition in tabling ministers' asset declarations

The standards commissioner has flagged a lack of transparency in the delayed publication of Cabinet members’ 2023 asset declarations, saying the prime minister’s decision to depart from a 30-year practice of tabling them in parliament weakened public scrutiny.

The criticism came in response to a complaint filed in January by Arnold Cassola, chairperson of Partit Momentum, who alleged that the declarations, which by long-standing practice are submitted to Parliament, were long overdue.

According to the commissioner, the declarations were finally tabled in parliament on 25 January 2025, nearly a year after they were due, following growing public attention on the matter in late 2024.

The established practice since the early 1990s has seen ministers and parliamentary secretaries submit their annual declarations to the Cabinet secretary, who then forwards them to the Speaker of the House for tabling. However, in 2024 this did not happen.

While the prime minister said that ministers had fulfilled their obligations under the code of ethics by submitting their declarations by the end of March, he argued there was no legal requirement to table them in parliament, as the Manual of Cabinet Procedures does not expressly require this.

The commissioner acknowledged that all Cabinet members submitted their declarations on January 20 or 21, shortly before they were tabled by Opposition MP Karol Aquilina.

However, it noted that the prime minister’s failure to send the declarations to the Speaker as had been done in the past constituted a break from established transparency practices.

Despite this, the Commissioner decided not to pursue a full investigation, citing the fact that the declarations were ultimately tabled and invoking discretionary powers under Article 17(3) of the Standards in Public Life Act.

The watchdog also revealed it had made reform proposals to the prime minister aimed at increasing transparency, including recommendations to make asset declarations by ministers publicly available by default and to align Malta’s system with international standards from the OECD and GRECO.