Updated | Muscat coercing public workers through intimidation, says Fenech on Google group advisors

Former shadow Finance minister Tonio Fenech has described a news report carried by GWU newspaper It-Torca, in which it alleged that a group of public officials forming part of a Google Group on the PN's shadow finance group would pass on sensitive financial information from the NSO before this was even published or sent to the government itself, as “pure intimidation by the Prime Minister.”

In comments to MaltaToday, Fenech categorically denied that “any information which was not already public information had been shared” with him via the group.

He said he had no idea as to how it-Torca got hold of this information, but added that “the fact that the members are under attack and portrayed as spies is unacceptable. This is pure intimidation by the Prime Minister.”

Fenech described it as an indication of how the Prime Minister’s standards had changed since he was in Opposition. “[Labour MP] Silvio Schembri was an employee of the central bank, but nobody in the PN had accused him of being a spy, simply because he worked for an institution. Schembri also had access to sensitive information, but in a professional environment, one does not pass such information on.”

Fenech took exception at Muscat's claims that his advisors were "spies".

"In today's democratic society it is unacceptable that normal people are threatened and intimidated simply because they belong to a political party and not the other. They have the constitutional right to be associated with anyone without the fear of political discrimination - Muscat intimdated anyone who works in the public sector by making an example of these individuals," Fenech said.

He accused Muscat of being in a state of panic over scandals like the Gaffarena expropriation engulfing his government.

"This government purports itself to be open to everyone, but uses intimdation on those who disagree with it. It is dictatorial that the government spies on emails for the control of common citizens." The Torca report said that Fenech was being given access to sensitive information through a network of friends working in high places in notably independent institutions like Malta’s Central Bank, the Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA) and the National Statistics Office (NSO).

The report claimed that the public officials not only breached their code of ethics by revealing the data but given that the communications took place in the morning, this wrongdoing was carried out during office hours.

The Google group called “Finance Shadow Group” was set up to discuss party strategy on finance matters with Tonio Fenech, then shadow finance minister, and members of his former ministerial secretariat. 

Fenech, who was finance shadow minister between May 2014 and January 2015, would liaise with the statistics chief of the Central Bank, Chris Pace, MFSA communications chief Keith Zahra and Carlos Camenzuli from the NSO. Zahra was responsible for public relations when Fenech was finance minister until 28 January 2013, when he was employed by the MFSA. Camenzuli on the other hand saw his contract with NSO extended on the 28 February 2013, only a week prior to the general elections.

Others involved in the group included Colin Calleja, Fenech’s former private secretary, PN consultant Lawrence Zammit, the former public relations officer for Austin Gatt, Jes Saliba and current PN communications chief Matthew Bonnett.   

The group advised Fenech on the decisions taken by the Labour government and the preferable course of action for the opposition.

Leader of the Opposition Simon Busuttil later reshuffled his shadow cabinet, removing Fenech from the shadow finance portfolio. Fenech is currently part of the group of spokespeople for foreign affiars under MEP Roberta Metsola.