Malta is set to establish its first National Commission for Human Rights and Equality under a new bill which the government says will strengthen protection against discrimination, while the Opposition has warned that the proposed structure risks being too heavily influenced by the government.

Equality and Civil Rights Minister Rosianne Cutajar presented the bill's second reading in Parliament on Tuesday, describing it as a major step towards creating an independent institution to protect human rights and promote equality.

Opposition Leader Alex Borg and Nationalist Party shadow minister Graziella Attard Previ both welcomed the principle behind establishing the commission but criticised the government over what they said was a lack of consultation and insufficient safeguards guaranteeing the institution's independence.

Cutajar said the commission would operate as both a national human rights institution and an equality body, with powers to investigate complaints, launch investigations on its own initiative and provide remedies to people who suffer discrimination.

She said the law would broaden the legal meaning of discrimination to cover different forms of discriminatory conduct, including unwanted behaviour linked to personal characteristics which violates a person's dignity or creates a hostile, intimidating or offensive environment.

The protections would also apply to unwanted conduct on social media, Cutajar said, adding that a person's dignity must be protected in every setting so that people can live their lives peacefully.

The bill would also make it unlawful not only to discriminate directly against another person but also to instruct someone else to discriminate. Cutajar said those who order discriminatory treatment should also bear responsibility.

The minister said the bill would widen the list of protected characteristics and strengthen protection for persons with disabilities, with Malta going beyond minimum European standards in certain areas.

She said establishments could not refuse to provide services to same-sex couples or persons with disabilities, while different treatment in areas including banking would have to be justified.

Victims of discrimination would be able to bring cases forward and could be awarded compensation for the treatment they suffered, she said. The bill would also strengthen provisions concerning the burden of proof.

Cutajar said the new commission would not be limited to investigating complaints submitted to it but would also have the power to begin investigations on its own initiative.

The reform would also apply to the public sector, she said. Public authorities would be placed under an equality duty requiring the state not only to avoid discrimination but to work actively towards eliminating it.

Within one year, the government would also be required to launch a national action plan on equality and human rights.

"This is a contract with the Maltese people," Cutajar said, arguing that the government was committing itself to continuous work in an area which directly affects how people live and relate to one another.

She said establishing a ministry specifically dedicated to equality and civil rights had sent a strong message that protecting people's rights was a government priority.

Cutajar said economic and social progress must continue to move together, arguing that every generation had faced its own battles over rights, from workers' rights to access to education.

The government now had a responsibility to continue building on those achievements by protecting people's dignity and fundamental rights, she said.

Cutajar said work on the bill had been ongoing for years and that expertise from abroad and different international structures had been considered in developing the proposed model.

The commission, she said, should become an institution of the highest standards with the tools needed to defend and assist people who believe they have suffered discrimination.

Attard Previ agreed that Malta needs a national human rights institution, but criticised the government for taking too long to act and then moving forward without what she described as sufficient structured consultation.

She said the establishment of such an institution was not a luxury or a cosmetic reform but an essential feature of a democratic state.

Malta, she said, had remained without such a body for too long despite repeated calls from civil society and other organisations.

The Opposition had previously proposed expanding the mandate of the Office of the Ombudsman rather than creating a completely separate structure. That model, she argued, would have avoided duplication and built on an institution which already enjoys autonomy, independence and experience.

However, Attard Previ stressed that the PN was not opposing the establishment of the new commission, saying the Opposition itself had called for a national human rights institution.

Its concern, she said, was whether the proposed structure would be strong and independent enough and capable of meeting the Paris Principles governing national human rights institutions.

Attard Previ criticised the process used to bring the bill before Parliament, saying the government should have launched a White Paper process and invited NGOs, professionals, the Ombudsman and other stakeholders to analyse the proposed model before legislation was tabled.

She also questioned whether international institutions had been consulted on the model and whether the commission would be capable of securing high-level international recognition.

The PN would be constructive but firm in scrutinising the bill, she said, insisting that Parliament should not approve legislation simply to "tick a box".

PN Leader Alex Borg also focused heavily on the lack of consultation, saying no White Paper had been published and insufficient space had been provided for stakeholders to analyse the proposed system before the bill reached Parliament.

He accused the government of excluding the very organisations and professionals who work directly with people whose rights the commission is supposed to protect.

"You cannot speak about inclusion while excluding stakeholders" who work to safeguard those rights, Borg said.

He said human rights were not a gift granted by any government but rights which the state was obliged to respect, protect and defend.

The Opposition supported the principle of establishing the commission because Malta had gone too long without such an institution, Borg said, but its credibility would ultimately depend on its independence, competence, resources and willingness to scrutinise those in power.

He warned that an institution created to protect people against discrimination could not itself be dependent on the government of the day.

Borg called for agreement from both sides of the House on the commission's structure and said the body must have real powers to obtain information and pursue its work effectively.

"We do not need an institution that writes reports and puts them on a shelf," he said.

The Opposition Leader also raised concerns over the appointment of the commission's nine members, arguing that the process proposed in the bill remained too heavily controlled by the minister.

He said a more transparent system was needed, with stronger participation from civil society and people who work directly in the human rights and equality sectors.

The permanent consultative committee linked to the commission should not simply consist of people chosen through government-controlled structures, Borg argued, but should meaningfully involve people with direct expertise in the field from the beginning of the process.

He also criticised what he described as the exclusion of the Ombudsman from the reform, noting that the Ombudsman had previously proposed extending the office's mandate to fulfil the role of a national human rights institution.

Borg said many important guarantees concerning the new commission's independence would remain in ordinary legislation, leaving them open to amendment by a simple parliamentary majority.

The PN, he said, would therefore propose amendments aimed at strengthening the commission's independence and ensuring that citizens could genuinely trust it.

The Opposition would be constructive but would not give the government a "blank cheque", Borg said.

"A democratic country is not measured by how many institutions it creates, but by how capable it is of involving those who understand the sector," he said.

Both sides ultimately agreed on the need for stronger protection of human rights and equality in Malta, but remained divided over whether the government's proposed model provides sufficient independence, consultation and institutional safeguards.

The bill will now continue through the parliamentary process, with the Opposition expected to push for amendments aimed at reducing government influence and strengthening the new commission's independence.