The Environment Minister, smoking in a Hamrun bar this morning and ‘hiding the cigarette’ for the photograph

This is Malta’s Minister for the Environment, in the Hamrun Labour Party club bar this morning with some mates, breaking the law by smoking but thinking he’s hidden his cigarette while the photograph is taken.

And something else: smoking or not, we really don’t want to be seeing cabinet ministers hanging round in this fashion. It looks really bad – nothing to do with the te-u-pastizz syndrome – and the lack of boundaries is frightening.

I’m trying to picture a scenario in which a German or French cabinet minister would be photographed on a Sunday morning hanging around in a tacky bar in a rough neighbourhood with a couple of low-lifes, smoking or not. The fact that the bar is in the party club doesn’t make it better.

Visits to party clubs are necessary for politicians – but they shouldn’t hang around. Walk in, press the flesh and chat for 10 minutes, and walk out again. The minute you begin hanging around, lolling on chairs and holding court, you’re asking for a lot of trouble.

And cabinet ministers should stay away altogether. Now they are no longer party people, but ministers of the government. So unless there’s an event patronised by the Prime Minister wearing his party leader hat, and you’re accompanying him, just keep away.

Seeing the Minister for the Environment lolling about like this is really off-putting. Let’s hope he wasn’t blaspheming about the Mother of God’s private parts.