Opposition leader in parliament: Police Commissioner is a government-protecting puppet

The Opposition leader said in parliament this evening that the government’s proposed legislation which will see Police Commissioners appointed for just five years will make them even less autonomous and also undermine their ability to set out a long-term plan for the police force.

Calling the present Police Commissioner, Lawrence Cutajar, a “puppet known for little more than his Facebook posts of admiration for the Prime Minister”, and pointing out that he was the fourth appointee in as many years, Simon Busuttil said that the Opposition wants Police Commissioners to be given security of tenure on a permanent basis, and that they should be appointed by a two-thirds vote in the House.