Justice minister shifts blame regarding long-forgotten bouncer regulations

Justice Minister Jonathan Attard skirted a parliamentary question regarding updating bouncer and security guard regulations that seem to have been forgotten by government. 

On Monday, PN spokesperson for family and social security Albert Buttigieg asked Attard if the time has come to amend these regulations that had been presented to then home affairs minister Carmelo Abela in 2017. 

In response, Attard said that his ministry is at the disposition of all other ministries should they request amendments in legislation in order to address particular issues, indirectly shifting responsibility to the Home Affairs Ministry in the process.

Last Sunday, MaltaToday reported that government's plans aimed to overhaul bouncer and security guard regulations are still collecting dust, despite draft legislation that was drawn up over six years ago.

In 2019, MaltaToday reported that the bill had been presented to the then minister of Home Affairs, Carmelo Abela, on the eve of the 2017 election. Due to the lack of time to implement the proposal at that point, it remained on hold even after the election. A spokesperson for the newly appointed minister of Home Affairs, Michael Farrugia, stated at that time that the bill was being redrafted. 

For years since then, Malta saw case after case of bouncers and security guards brutally beating partygoers.

Most recently, a number of bouncers were seen savagely beating a man on the ground in Paceville. Five bouncers have since been charged in court, with one of them even claiming that he was working as a bouncer without a license.