The government clarified that the positioning of the Speaker of the House of Representatives in the order of precedence at formal State events reflects the state of affairs in other EU member states such as the United Kingdom, France, Germany and Italy, where the positioning of the Speaker of the House precedes that of the Chief Justice.
The reply from Office of the Principal Permanent Secretary to an article - Chief Justice says Parliamentary Service Act ‘is not in force yet’ – also insists that the Parliamentary Service Act is, in actual fact, in force and that “the fact that the relative legal notice has not yet been published is a mere technicality and does not belittle the fact that Parliament has passed this legislation and that the President of Malta has given her consent.”
The full right of reply is as follows:
“Reference is made to article published in the 30 December edition of The Malta Independent entitled Chief Justice says Parliamentary Service Act ‘is not in force yet’.
“The Office of the Principal Permanent Secretary would like to point out that the Parliamentary Service Act was passed by Parliament and given the President of Malta’s consent on 5 August 2016.
“The Parliamentary Service Act goes beyond the issue of the standing of the Speaker of the House to reflect the positioning of other Speakers in Europe. Indeed in the United Kingdom, France, Germany and Italy, the Speaker of the House precedes the Chief Justice. The Act, above all, gives autonomy to Parliament which leads to its functioning independently from the rest of the public service, in its disposition of being the highest institution in the country.
“The fact that the relative legal notice has not yet been published is a mere technicality and does not belittle the fact that Parliament has passed this legislation and that the President of Malta has given her consent.
“It has now been established that the Chief Justice is still in the first category of the precedence list; the Judges have retained their position; and that Magistrates moved up a number of places in the precedence list so as to reflect their responsibilities.
“This Office acknowledges that the ongoing debate is no longer based on principles but on technicalities.”