Former Finance Minister Edward Scicluna urged more professionals who don’t work in law or medicine to enter politics in his final speech as MP this evening.

“As someone who entered politics in the later stages of my career, I’m often referred to as a technocrat,” Scicluna, an economist, said. “It seems that people in Malta think you’re either a technocrat, which means you’re a robot who doesn’t understand politics, or else a politician who isn’t a technocrat.”

“I hope this situation changes and we’ll have more varied professions represented in Parliament, not only lawyers and doctors, but also economists, accountants, architects, people who study the arts and so on.”

He urged government and Opposition MPs to build bridges, warning that a bitter political climate is putting off valid people from taking the plunge into politics. 

Scicluna has been an MP for the past seven years, throughout which he was also Finance Minister. 

Malta’s economy grew at a record rate and unemployment dropped to record lows under his watch, but he was also criticised for not taking action against corruption. 

He has since been succeeded by Clyde Caruana and will now take on the role of Central Bank Governor. However, the Opposition voted against this nomination, with MP and former leader Adrian Delia recently warning his appointment will only further taint the island’s reputation on financial crime. 

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