Chairman of the Occupational Health and Safety Authority David Xuereb told the public inquiry into the death of Jean Paul Sofia that it had requested a budget which would have tripled the number of enforcement officers it had, but this was not granted.

He also said that naming and shaming the ‘cowboys’ of the construction industry is essential, and those who do not want to observe the rules should be stripped of their license and told to work elsewhere.

Xuereb, an architect by profession, was the first witness out of five to testify before the public inquiry board into Jean Paul Sofia’s death on Thursday morning.

He is also the chairperson of the Malta Council for Economic and Social Development (MCESD), as well as a director in the Building and Construction Authority (BCA).

The board’s chair – retired Judge and current Ombudsman Joseph Zammit McKeon questioned Xuereb on several matters concerning his role, and the OHSA’s role in comparison with the BCA.

Xuereb said that he was approached by then-Minister Aaron Farrugia back when the BCA was set up, in around March or April of 2021, with Zammit McKeon outlining that Xuereb was first at the BCA, then the OHSA, and then the MCESD.

Zammit McKeon proceeded to ask Xuereb whether he saw a conflict of interest between being a director of the BCA and the chairman of OHSA, to which he answered that he has been asked this before he accepted the post, and that his role was in transforming the construction industry in line with principles of sustainability.

The retired judge repeated the question, specifying on the relationship between his BCA and OHSA posts.

“In my head, no,” Xuereb replied.

Xuereb said that the BCA focuses on construction and bringing seriousness into the industry but has no health and safety responsibility.

Zammit McKeon listed out a scenario: if a building falls or an accident occurs, then it is the OHSA which is responsible and not the BCA, to which Xuereb agreed with.

Zammit McKeon then asked whether there are overlaps between the BCA and the OHSA, to which Xuereb replied that the OHSA does not only have to deal with the construction industry in terms of workplace safety, but does dedicate a hefty chunk of resources to this industry.

The inquiry board chair asked about the enforcement of the BCA’s regulations, and asked how many people are employed by the authority to enforce these.

Xuereb said that he wasn’t sure about the exact number but thinks that there are around 20 employed.  That number is the same as the one given by Planning Minister Stefan Zrinzo Azzopardi last week.

Zammit McKeon then asked about how many enforcement officers are employed with the OHSA, to which Xuereb replied that there are 14 such officers employed, having increased from 12 in around February or March 2022.

“These 14 enforcement officers are responsible for enforcing health and safety in every industry and workplace on the island,” he said.

Zammit McKeon asked Xuereb whether this number changed after the death of Jean Paul Sofia.

“As far as I know, it remained the same,” Xuereb replied.

He said that the board looks into and handles the authority’s business plan, which is presented to it and then identifies the deficiencies where necessary.

Xuereb said that one such deficiency identified in this plan was that the number of enforcement officers needs to triple from 14.

Zammit McKeon asked if there was any direction from a minister on any policy or direction of where they wanted the authority to go, to which Xuereb said that there wasn’t.

He asked Xuereb for details on the implementation of this business plan and on how much funding the authority had sought.

Xuereb replied that the business plan sought the increase of the enforcement staff from 14 to 45 people and the increase in administrative staff as well. In terms of funding, the increase contemplated for was of €2 million spread across three years.

“These were approved by the board, but we always had delays from a procurement side,” Xuereb said.

On a resources level, there has not been the opportunity to do anything more than replace those who leave, Xuereb continued.

He pointed out that there is also the lack of skilled workers for the job at hand for the OHSA to choose from, adding that the diplomas which used to be offered at MCAST no longer exist.  This is an important preamble before considering the money aspect – money which he admitted was never granted.

He said that the authorities - both the OHSA and BCA - also try to effect collaborations with various entities and themselves to work more effectively.

Board member Perit Mario Cassar asked about the MoUs which Xuereb mentioned, to which the OHSA chairman replies that the pity is that the MoUs are necessary to establish relationships “which should be second nature.”

Cassar asked questions on a couple of technical matters, first relating to the commencement notice – which is the notice submitted by the project architect to the Planning Authority to state that the works have begun – and whether all authorities over and above the PA should be informed.

Xuereb said that he agreed and continued by saying that there should be a centralised digital system which encompasses the PA, BCA, OHSA, and even JobsPlus in order to regulate who is working in the sector.

Cassar asked about the role of the Site Technical Officer (STO) and if there can be a conflict of interest if the contractor appoints the STO, to which Xuereb replied in the affirmative, saying that he has never seen the role of STO anywhere outside Malta. 

“Other countries have project managers who are appointed by the developer or client, and then a health and safety officer distinct from the person,” he said.

Cassar asked whether the method statement should be presented at application stage, and not after.

Xuereb agreed and added that there has to be a digital repository for these which would be a “gold mine” to ensure that things have been done properly.

Cassar also asked whether there was a board meeting which discussed the Sofia incident, and Xuereb said that there was one which took place in March 2023, around four months after the incident.

“What is the OHSA doing at this level, where it seems that even a safety hat is optional? How are you going to fight this shocking mentality?” Zammit McKeon asked Xuereb.

Xuereb said that as far as five years ago he had already been proposing a scheme to license and train contractors, but the fact is that this would mean that a lot of people in the sector now would not be capable of working in it.

One of the key parts of institutional reforms is that the government and public authorities set the example by using public funds for those who truly follow health and safety regulations, Xuereb said.

Auditor General Charles Deguara asked about the number of inspections which are done, to which Xuereb replied that around 4,000 inspections are done every year coming from reports, requests by the supervisor itself or casual inspections.

Deguara mentioned the Sofia case specifically, saying that because there wasn’t even a commencement notice filed then nobody could call and report, after Xuereb said that they were receiving many calls being unhappy with the OHSA being harsh with them.

Lawyer Therese Comodini Cachia, representing the Sofia family asked about the budget which the OHSA had requested and referred to the Budget 2023 documents, saying that the approved estimate for 2022 was of €1.4 million, and in 2023 this was €1.5 million.

She asked if the actual increase was that of €100,000, to which Xuereb replied affirmatively, contextualising this with what he said earlier in the sitting that this depended on tendering matters – where there were significant bureaucratic issues – and on actually having the skilled human resources available to employ even if the authority had the money to do so.

Comodini Cachia asked whether there would have been any meetings with the Finance Ministry to negotiate this budget request.

Xuereb said that there would have been, and the CEO would have been involved, not the board.

She asked about the White Paper on new health and safety regulations – which was issued last April – and whether the law firm which drafted this was engaged by the ministry, to which Xuereb replied in the affirmative.

He said that the OHSA board was not consulted in the process of the drafting of the new regulations.

“The White Paper was presented to the board for their reaction, and they signed it off before it was announced.  Their reactions are documented in a board meeting, which was duly minuted,” he said, and Zammit McKeon asked him to present together with board minutes of when Sofia's death was discussed.

He said that the duty holder must take action on the competence, or lack thereof of the worker on site.

“If OHSA finds a problem, it goes to the duty holder and tells them that it’s their problem and they must act?” Comodini Cachia asked to which Xuereb replied in the affirmative.

“The OHSA is a regulator not a duty holder on site,” Xuereb said, when Comodini Cachia asked what exactly the OHSA does.