On 27 April 2026, the Commissioner wrote to the Speaker to set out his views on a parliamentary motion proposing changes to the code of ethics for MPs and the code of ethics for ministers.

The Commissioner welcomed some of the proposed changes, including the introduction of the values of loyalty, objectivity, honesty, accountability, transparency and confidentiality in the code of ethics for MPs.

He also noted shortcomings, notably the elimination of the obligation for MPs to declare property held by their spouses within a community of acquests and the obligation for ministers to declare financial investments and bank accounts held by their spouses within a community of acquests.

The Commissioner stated that he understood the concern about privacy with respect to the relatives of MPs. However, he referred to an OECD report which proposed that he should have the power to obtain information from the relatives of an MP, should this be necessary to verify the MP’s declaration of assets as required by law.  He stated that this proposal reconciled transparency and privacy, because his office would keep the information gathered by it confidential if it found no irregularity in the MP’s declaration. The Commissioner said that in the absence of such a mechanism, the elimination of the obligation to declare spouses’ assets was a matter of serious concern.

The Commissioner went on to say that the OECD report included important proposals that had yet to be implemented. Among other things, the report proposed the introduction of a register of gifts received by MPs and ministers; restrictions on the jobs that ministers could accept after they ceased to hold office; and the regulation of contacts between ministers and lobbyists. He said that it would be a pity to miss the opportunity for an extensive reform of the ethical framework of public life in Malta as proposed by the OECD.

The Commissioner requested the Speaker to lay the letter on the table of the House, but Parliament was dissolved before this could be done. The Commissioner published his letter to place his views on record. It is available from this website in Maltese and English.