Public Accounts Committee chairman calls PAC meeting for tomorrow to request copy of government/Henley contract
Published:
May 20, 2014 at 3:41pm
After the government refused to release a copy of its contract with Henley & Partners at the request of Opposition MPs, the matter was referred to the Speaker of the House who said yesterday that individual MPs do not have the right to demand a copy of the contract, but that the Public Accounts Committee most certainly does.
But the Public Accounts Committee, he said, must take “safeguard the interests of justice” as there is court case pending in which a rival bidder for the contract has put up a challenge. There should also be safeguards, the Speaker said, against “the disclosure of sensitive commercial information” and on matters which affect “national security”.
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http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20140520/local/fenech-convenes-pac-meeting-pn-says-delays-in-production-of-henley-contract-unacceptable.519814
National bloody security again. How on earth can the knowledge of the contract compromise national security? Because it lists those countries whose citizens are barred from the sale of passports scheme and so would make us a few enemies?
If there are any matters that affect national security, why is a private firm privy to them?
Let’s see it differently. After the Speaker’s ruling, as long as the Labour government continues to hide the contract with Henley & Partners, we can assume that the entire contract is against national security and that is why the government is keeping it under wraps.
Who are the members of the Public Accounts Committee?
The PL members are not going to concede report being issued before next Saturday. Friday is silence day. That leaves them with Wednesday evening and Thursday. Let’s see what excuse they will be coming up with.
Anglu Farrugia’s ruling sets the stage for a mossa by our brave leader. Only the Public Accounts Committee may ask for a copy. Guess who has a majority on the PAC… hope I’m wrong.
Isn’t this a futile exercise? The Hon. Speakers knows exactly the composition of the Public Accounts Committee. In my opinion he is once again covering for Muscat.
The Public Accounts Committee, having a majority of Labour MPs, will eventually vote against the disclosure of the contract and then the Government, that is Joey Muscat, will come out saying that it will abide by the ruling of the Public Accounts Committee.
It’s a win-win situation for the Baron of Burmarrad. The Speaker’s got his back.
Dahq fil-wicc. L-Ispeaker ipoggi l-kliem li jinftiehem minn kullhad.
Il-gvern jghid li il-kuntratt ikun ippublikat ‘in due time’.
U dan kollu qabel ma ltaqa il-PAC.
Din bhal tat-tanker qabel ittiehed il-vot.
I’ve got a couple of questions:
Who is this “rival bidder”?
Isn’t it convenient that a mysterious bidder is holding up this situation?
Is this the prime function of this rival bidder?
[Daphne – Most definitely not.]
I assume you realize that the PAC will get the contract, most likely, not until the week after next.
Next week there is a conference in Malta put on by Henley to celebrate the program. They will not want to defend the contract at that conference.
But in any case, the speaker of the house protected the PM by saying that commercially sensitive information does not need to be disclosed.
That means that the amount of money paid to Henley, for no good reason as there is no reason for a concessionaire to exist, will not be disclosed.
The rest does not matter. What matters is how much money the government is losing by being provided a service (badly I might add) that the government does not need and could do itself.
And at the expense of Maltese professionals too.
Many are under the impression that they are now on a level playing field with Henley & Partners. Not quite. Their applications get vetted by IIP Processing which is owned by Henley (incidentally a relative of one of the Labour ministers, Edward Zammit Lewis, sits on the Board) so Henley is still a gatekeeper.
And this is a company who has already been known to promise the fast tracking of applications if paid more. Moreover Henley get paid 4% fee on every successful applicant so they make monies on others clients too.
The Russians and the Chinese signed a gas deal and immediately publish the main features; volumes, pricing and duration.
http://www.cnbc.com/id/101692038
The Maltese ‘transparent’ Government has to constantly be pushed to publish public agreements like this Henley contract and the power station related deals which the Prime Minister says were signed and were not signed etc.
So much for a transparent government.