Konrad Mizzi’s wife is back on State payroll as trade envoy with Malta Enterprise

The wife of minister Konrad Mizzi will be enjoying a government salary yet again after her contract was renewed with Malta Enterprise.

Her appointment in 2013 as a trade envoy in Shanghai caused widespread consternation as the new Labour government came to power on a pledge to introduce meritocracy in public service.

Instead, Mizzi-Liang was paid a handsome salary to become a diplomatic envoy, while her husband was caught out in 2016 as having opened a secret offshore company in Panama and attempted to secure an international bank account for future earnings.

News that Mizzi-Liang has now retained her posting after the end of her three-year tour, comes with disbelief as the Opposition protested at Mizzi after he delivered a statement in parliament on the sale of St George’s Bay land. Since his demotion from ‘energy minister’ – though he retains the portfolio as a minister under the Prime Minister’s purview – the Opposition has boycotted all statements delivered in the House by Mizzi.

On Tuesday night, Mizzi skirted questions raised by the Opposition on his involvement in Panama Papers and reports that his wife will stay on in Shanghai as Malta’s special envoy to Asia.

In a statement on Wednesday morning, Mizzi said that his wife’s contract had ended in August 2016, and then answered a public call for applications from Malta Enterprise. “As one would appreciate, it is not easy to attract and fine people with the necessary skills for this role, and the Corporation is also looking for someone else to be special envoy to China.”

On Tuesday night inside parliament, holding placards reading “I don’t have a secret company in Panama”, the Opposition led by Simon Busuttil walked out during Mizzi’s delivery of the statement. The Opposition later returned to ask questions.

But the questions fielded by the Opposition did not only focus on the ITS contract, and grilled Mizzi and Prime Minister Joseph Muscat on the Panama Papers revelations, about who owned the third, unknown offshore company Egrant which was opened by auditors Nexia, and whether it was true that Sai Mizzi Liang’s Shanghai contract had been renewed.

Egrant emerged alongside instructions by Nexia to Mossack Fonseca in Panama to open the offshore companies Hearnville Inc – owned by Konrad Mizzi which he said he would close down after a tax audit, as yet not even completed or published – and Tillgate Inc, owned by chief of staff Keith Schembri.

A year ago, when Mizzi was elected deputy leader of the Labour party, he had announced that Mizzi Liang’s contract would not be renewed. He resigned two months later following the Panama Papers revelations.

At the time he had said: “I’m not just a minister now, my role has changed. We decided it is for the best.”

But it now transpires that Mizzi Liang’s contract was renewed again last year, just a few months ago.

Ignoring the questions, Mizzi told parliament that the questions not related to the ITS contract raised this evening, “prove that we have a robust contract with strong clauses and obligations”.

Earlier on Tuesday morning, whilst addressing a media briefing on the electricity power cut, Mizzi told journalists that questions on Mizzi Liang’s contract should be directed “to the relevant minister”.