Cachia Caruana cost country €239,000 in severance pay - minister

Foreign Minister George Vella said in Parliament this afternoon that the termination of the contract of Richard Cachia Caruana, Malta's former permanent representative to the EU, had cost Malta €239,000 in terminal benefits, including payments for banked leave. Furthermore, in terms of his contract, Mr Cachia Caruana was being paid €5,900 per month for two years. The workings of Mr Cachia Caruana's contract, he said, showed that he used to be paid €400 a day. Such terms, Dr Vella said, were scandalous but not surprising from a former government whose ministers had given themselves a raise of €600 weekly. He said ministry officials had told him that the contract terms were agreed following instructions from the then Office of the Prime Minister. Mr Cachia Caruana resigned on June 19 after parliament approved an Opposition motion censuring him. Then Nationalist MP Jeffrey Pullicino Orlando had voted with the Opposition. In his speech Dr Vella also revealed that Labour MP Chris Fearne will be the new chairman of the parliamentary Foreign Affairs Committee.