Environment minister says he had nothing to do with engagement of workers before the election

Environment Minister Jose' Herrera defended the way Wasteserv hired workers in the weeks before the general election when he answered questioned by the Public Accounts Committee on Tuesday. The Opposition’s line of questioning has in previous sittings focussed on a potential political motivation for the engagement of these workers, especially because just over 30 per cent of the recruits hailed from the first electoral district, which was contested by the Environment Minister himself. In this vein, Committee Chairperson Beppe Fenech Adami asked the minister whether he thought it appropriate for the cessation of civil service engagement, imposed by law immediately following the dissolution of Parliament on May 1, 2017, to be sidestepped, and for workers to be engaged indirectly, through a contract of services with Wasteserv employment contractor JF just weeks before the election. He also asked the minister whether he felt it appropriate to take “major decisions” during a time when he was still unsure whether he would be returned to Parliament, to government, and to his specific ministerial post. Dr Herrera replied that he was not responsible for any decision taken by Wasteserv to...