Finance Minister Clyde Caruana has apologised for breaching the code of ethics over a Facebook sponsored post advert and has refunded the small amount it cost to the treasury, a report by the Standards Commissioner read.

On 6 October 2022, independent politician Arnold Cassola had filed a complaint with the Standards Commissioner regarding an advert paid for by public funds that he believed "constituted clear personal propaganda by Minister Clyde Caruana and goes against the guidelines published by the Standards Commissioner in June 2021." Cassola had requested that the Standards Commissioner investigate the minister's actions. 

The complaint was over a Facebook post on 5 October, the Commissioner noted, on the Finance Ministry's official Facebook page.

The advert took the form of a sponsored post and according to the report cost €83.90. It included a photo of Minister Caruana, along with his name and position, with the words "While Europe threw the weight of four times higher energy costs on families and businesses, this government will spend €1.1 billion so that this will not happen in our country." It was a sponsored post, meaning that the ministry, as the owner of the page, paid so that it would have a wider circulation than normal among those who use Facebook.

The Standards Commissioner referred the complaint to Minister Caruana through a letter on 16 March 2023, asking for his views and to provide information regarding the value of the advert, if he considered it to be in the public interest, if it respected the distinction between his role as a minister and being a politician in his personal capacity, among other things.

The minister said that the post cost €83.90, including production and circulation costs, excluding VAT. The minister said the post was issued a few days before the budget, and said that the minister has a duty to inform and explain where the government is focusing its work and expenditure. The minister, among other things, also said that the post quoted a statement the minister had made while presenting the pre-budget document, the Commissioner's report read. The minister denied breaching the code of ethics, and said the aim of the post was "to provide information of public interest and explain the context and work the government was doing through the preparation of the budget, in my capacity as finance minister."

Among other things, the commissioner noted that if a minister appears in an advert to publicise a measure taken by government, this leads one to understand that the minister is trying to benefit politically or personally by taking credit for the measure in the eyes of the public.

The Commissioner found that the advert was in breach of the code of ethics for ministers. But the Commissioner said that the case is not of a grievous nature when one compares the value of the advert when compared to two cases which were considered by the previous Standards Commissioner.

"For this reason I wrote to Minister Caruana informing him about my conclusions about this case, and that to my understanding the case can easily conclude under Article 22(5) of the Standards in Public Life Act. Through this article, the Commissioner can close a case if the breach of ethics is not grave, and if the person investigated remedies the breach in a way that the Commissioner finds adequate."

The Commissioner proposed that the minister sent a short written apology to recognize the breach since his photo and name were used in the advert, and pledge that this breach will not occur again.

The minister responded, saying that the post was aimed at providing information in the public interest and did not show any element of partiality or false information, but accepted the Commissioner's decision and also wrote apologizing and promising not to repeat the action. Aside from this, "as a goodwill gesture, I am refunding the public treasury €83.90 together with €15.10 in VAT expenses for this post from my personal funds," the minister said.

The Commissioner closed the case.

Commissioner statement

Government advertisements that feature ministers are in breach of ethics

In a statement, the Commissioner for Standards in Public Life has concluded that a government-sponsored post on Facebook represents a breach of ethics because it featured a minister.

The sponsored post in question appeared on 5 October 2022 in the official Facebook page of the Ministry for Finance and Employment. It consisted of a graphic featuring a photograph of the Hon. Clyde Caruana, Minister for Finance, together with his name and a quote stating that the government was to spend €1.1 billion to absorb rising energy costs.

The Commissioner for Standards took the view that a sponsored post amounted to an advertisement since it involved spending money to boost the circulation of a Facebook post, and that government advertisements should not feature the names or photographs of ministers. In his report on the case the Commissioner stated that “If a minister appears in an advertisement that aims to publicise a government measure, this indicates that the minister is seeking political and personal gain by taking the credit for that measure in the public eye.”

However, the Commissioner noted that the amount spent on the sponsored post was less than €90. This was a very small amount compared to cases considered by the previous Commissioner for Standards, which involved adverts costing €7,000 in one case and €16,700 in another case.

For this reason the Commissioner informed Minister Clyde Caruana that he was prepared close the case under article 22(5) of the Standards in Public Life Act if the Minister made an apology. Article 22(5) of the Act empowers the Commissioner to close a case if it is not serious and if the person investigated remedies the breach of ethics to the Commissioner’s satisfaction.

The Minister replied promptly with a letter in which he formally apologised for the case and undertook to avoid any such cases in future. On his own initiative, he paid the cost of the sponsored post out of his own funds and attached the receipt to his letter.

 

On this basis the Commissioner closed the case.