Clayton Bartolo resigns from ministerial role

Clayton Bartolo has resigned from his role as Malta’s Minister for Tourism, capping off a difficult three weeks since he was found to be in breach of ethics in a scandal concerning his then-girlfriend Amanda Muscat – now his wife – as well as Minister for Gozo and Planning Clint Camilleri.

Earlier in November, the Commissioner for Standards in Public Life released a report concluding that the Ministers had abused their ministerial power by hiring Ms Muscat, who had worked as Mr Bartolo’s secretary, as a policy consultant in his ministry on a €62,000 annual salary.

She was later transferred to Mr Camilleri’s ministry, where her salary increased.

Standards Commissioner Joseph Azzopardi in his report concluded that Ms Muscat did not carry out consultancy work and mainly continued her role as Mr Bartolo’s private secretary, albeit with significantly higher consultant-level pay, even while she was officially listed as an employee under Gozo Minister Clint Camilleri.

The investigation also revealed that Ms Muscat lacked the necessary qualifications for the consultant role.

Mr Bartolo reportedly tendered his resignation at the Prime Minister’s office at Castille on Tuesday morning, following heavy criticism from all sides, including the Opposition, smaller political parties, NGOs and the business community.

He will retain his Parliamentary seat.