Standards commissioner concludes record 30 complaints in 2024

According to the standard czar's 2024 annual report, the office received a total of 191 complaints since its establishment on October 30, 2018, with 175 complaints closed by the end of 2024

In 2024, the Commissioner concluded 14 investigations, corresponding to 17 complaints
In 2024, the Commissioner concluded 14 investigations, corresponding to 17 complaints

The Office of the Commissioner for Standards in Public Life concluded a record number of complaints in 2024 with 30 complaints closed.

According to the office's 2024 annual report, the commissioner's office received a total of 191 complaints since its establishment on October 30, 2018, with 175 complaints closed by the end of 2024.

In 2024, the Commissioner concluded 14 investigations, corresponding to 17 complaints. This is higher than the combined total of investigations closed in 2022 (5 investigations) and 2023 (7 investigations).

This resulted in the end-of-year backlog of complaints decreasing from 27 in 2023 to 16 in 2024. 

Among the most known cases investigated by the standards czar is the abuse of power by Clayton Bartolo and Clint Camilleri when they both awarded Bartolo’s wife Amanda Muscat a high-paying job.

Muscat was not qualified for the job and never performed any work, as the case resulted in Bartolo’s resignation from tourism minister.

Meanwhile, several cases involved allegations of public funds being used for personal publicity by ministers.

In one instance, a video featuring the Prime Minister, circulated via a sponsored government Facebook post, was found to be a breach of ethics for being personal publicity without public interest information.

Despite the commissioner's finding, the Standards Committee rejected his report, stating that his guidelines on government advertising had "no legal standing".

In his report, the standards czar also mentions Robert Abela’s refusal to table his cabinet’s 2023 asset declarations.

The report notes challenges such as the limited ability to investigate cabinet decisions and the current lack of a formal requirement for MPs to declare their income or to explicitly adhere to an obligation to tell the truth.