MALTA | Good Administration: made simple

by Judge Emeritus Joseph Zammit McKeon, Parliamentary Ombudsman:

As Maltese law stands at present, Art 41 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the EU, that provides for the right to good administration, is applicable only in the case of disputes of persons with the institutions of the EU.  

Art 41 of the Charter states:

1. Every person has the right to have his or her affairs handled impartially, fairly and within a reasonable time by the institutions and bodies of the Union.

2. This right includes: 

• the right of every person to be heard, before any individual measure which would affect him or her adversely is taken; 
• the right of every person to have access to his or her file, while respecting the legitimate interests of confidentiality and of professional and business secrecy; 
• the obligation of the administration to give reasons for its decisions. 

3. Every person has the right to have the Community make good any damage caused by its institutions or by its servants in the performance of their duties, in accordance with the general principles common to the laws of the Member States.

4. Every person may write to the institutions of the Union in one of the languages of the Treaties and must have an answer in the same language.

The question arises: 

Should the core principles of this provision be extended by legislation to apply for domestic matters and/or disputes between persons and the public service and/or the public administration in Malta?  

As a matter of principle, such a possibility should not be discarded a priori because of concerns for possible negative backlashes on the workings of the domestic public service and/or public administration.  This is stated because the principles at the basis of Art 41 are reasonable, reflect good practice, and endorse the rule of law.

In the United Kingdom, the Parliamentary and Health Ombudsman formulated principles of good administration for application by public bodies, with a clear framework within which public bodies should operate. The principles also promote a shared understanding of what is meant by good administration and help public bodies provide an optimal public service to their customers.

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Source: The Parliamentary Ombudsman - Malta