Lawyer Joe Giglio Says Time Has Come For State To Finance Major Political Parties 

Malta should develop a system whereby the state will finance the two major political parties, lawyer Joe Giglio has said.

Giglio, who has often been named as a prospective PN leader, made his point during a debate on Xarabank last night when PL candidate and lawyer Andy Ellul called for the publication of donors to the PN’s ċedoli loan scheme.

“The time has come to start addressing the way both parties are financed,” Giglio said. “If the PN has ċedoli and donors, so too does the PL and I personally believe that we must consider ways for parties to stop depending on donations.”

“We give money to several NGOs but political parties have an important function too. I think all these questions about whether the PL received money from the Tumas Group and whether PN received money from so-and-so are petty at this point in time.

“The time has come to organise a system whereby the state will finance political parties; it will be more transparent and ideal.”

The Nationalist Party formally proposed the state financing of political parties last December but the government has yet to pronounce itself on the issue.

Cover photo: Xarabank

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