Labour files motion of disapproval on finance ministry's withholding of honoraria

The motion calls for the disapproval of Cabinet’s “insensitive, arbitrary and non-transparent” decision to increase ministers’ salary with an increase parliamentary honorarium that was not paid to other MPs.

The Cabinet took a decision on 5 May, 2008 to increase the salaries for the Prime Minister and government ministers and parliamentary secretaries by being paid their MP’s honorarium as well as a higher salary.

The MP’s honorarium turned out to be a higher honorarium than those other MPs, and salaries were bumped up with four-fold increase in duty allowances.

The same decision should have included a similar increase for the salaries of the Speaker of the House and the Opposition leader, whose salaries are indexed to the Cabinet’s.

But so far the Cabinet has not forwarded this salary increase to the Opposition leader, despite having been already revealed by MaltaToday in October 2008 and later on last year by Joseph Muscat.

“This House is concerned that the parliamentary honoraria to the Prime Minister, ministers and parliamentary secretaries were not paid from the parliamentary estimates as required by the rules, but were taken from other budgetary votes without informing parliament.

“It notes that the Opposition leader has not yet been awarded his salary as decided on 5 May 2008; notes the Opposition leader’s public declaration to forward his honorarium increase to the charitable fund chaired by Judge emeritus Philip Sciberras, since he believes it is not opportune to claim this increase while so many families are passing through difficult times;

“Considers government’s attitude, in particular the finance minister’s, as a lack of respect to parliament and the people.”

In the wake of the controversy that embarrassed the government, Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi said ministers will be refunding some €14,000 in the increased honoraria they were paid since May 2008. But they would still retain the basic €19,000 honorarium they are paid as MPs every year, and refund the extra money they were paid as part of an ‘increased’ honorarium of €26,000 they were being paid in the past two years.

When the Cabinet decision was made public last year, Labour leader Joseph Muscat had been strongly against the “double salary” and promised to donate the entire €133,855 he would have received over five years to charity. The Times reported that Muscat never got the supplementary pay he was meant to receive along with ministers and parliamentary secretaries, and the government had refused to explain why.