Tourism budget debate overshadowed by Clayton Bartolo affair

Opposition leader Bernard Grech lashed out at Clayton Bartolo over the ethics breach involving his wife during the parliamentary debate on the tourism estimates.

Grech said the ethics breach flagged by the Standards Commissioner was symptomatic of a government that simply wanted to keep those close to it happy.

“They are not interested in the wellbeing of the people; they are only interested in keeping happy those who are close to them,” Grech said on Monday afternoon.

He insisted that while ordinary people who made wrong decisions had to face the consequencs of their actions, Bartolo believed it was enough for him to say ‘sorry’.

“For Clayton Bartolo it is enough to say sorry despite defrauding the public purse just to keep his girlfriend happy,” Grech said.

The tourism estimates debate was completely overshadowed by the Bartolo affair. The Standards Commissioner found that Bartolo and fellow minister Clint Camilleri abused their positions to give the former’s then girlfriend, Amanda Muscat, a consultancy contract she was not qualified for. Muscat, who subsequently married Bartolo last summer, had been working as a private secretary for Bartolo and continued doing the same work even when given a new job posting with a substantially higher income.

Grech accused the government of not being in touch with the daily troubles of ordinary people, who have to go out and work to earn a living.

The Opposition leader said all Labour MPs, who support Bartolo and Camilleri, are being an accomplice in the scandal and urged them to stand up and be counted.

“You should say that what ministers Bartolo and Camilleri did was wrong; what the Prime Minister has failed to do is wrong; otherwise you are confirming how out of touch you are with ordinary people,” Grech said, adding that Labour MPs were not realising how angry people are.

Grech was preceded by shadow tourism spokesperson Mario de Marco who also harped on the gravity of the Bartolo affair, while hitting out at the lack of investment in public infrastructure to ensure quality tourism.

PN MP Julie Zahra spoke about the film industry and sarcastically asked the Tourism Minister whether he would be saying ‘sorry’ to Maltese film producers for the reduced funding they had to contend with when compared to the cash rebate for foreign producers.

The Nationalist Party is organising a protest outside parliament calling for the resignation of the two ministers.

The debate is ongoing.