The Commissioner for Standards in Public Life
investigates breaches of ethical standards by ministers, members of Parliament and persons of trust, and contributes to the improvement of standards of behaviour in public life.
Complaints
You can complain to the Standards Commissioner about unethical behaviour by ministers, members of Parliament or persons of trust.
Resources
Case reports and other documents issued by the Commissioner, and the codes of ethics for ministers, MPs and persons of trust.
Standards Committee
Parliament’s Standards Committee oversees the activities of the Commissioner. It is chaired by the Speaker of the House.
Ministers should not use official activities to promote themselves
The Commissioner for Standards in Public Life has concluded that ministers or parliamentary secretaries who used an official ministry activity for personal self-promotion would be in breach of ethics. The Standards Commissioner came to this conclusion after considering a complaint alleging that Parliamentary Secretary Alicia Bugeja Said had invited employees of her ministry to a...
An MP who does not submit a tax return is in breach of ethics
The Commissioner for Standards in Public Life has stated that it would be a breach of ethics if a member of parliament failed to declare his or her income for tax purposes. The Standards Commissioner came to this conclusion after considering three complaints against former MP Dr Jason Azzopardi for not submitting his tax returns...
Standards Commissioner recommends that advertising guidelines should be given legal basis
Chief Justice Emeritus Joseph Azzopardi, Commissioner for Standards in Public Life, is recommending that the guidelines on government advertising issued by his office two years ago should be incorporated into law. The history these guidelines goes back to March 2021 when the previous Commissioner, Dr George Hyzler, referred a case involving an advertisement issued by...
