The European Anti-Fraud Office is a body mandated by the European Union (EU) with protecting the Union's financial interests. It was founded on 28 April 1999, under the European Commission Decision 1999/352. Its tasks are threefold:
Michael Frendo is a former Maltese politician who currently is a lawyer and consultant. Previously he served in the government of Malta in various functions including as Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2004 to 2008 and Speaker of the House of Representatives of Malta from 2010 to 2013. He is from Floriana brother of Henry Frendo.
Viviane Adélaïde Reding is a Luxembourgish politician and a former Member of the European Parliament (MEP) from Luxembourg. She is a member of the Christian Social People's Party, part of the European People's Party. She previously served as European Commissioner for Education and Culture from 1999 to 2004, European Commissioner for Information Society and Media from 2004 to 2010 and European Commissioner for Justice, Fundamental Rights and Citizenship from 2010 to 2014.
The Barroso Commission was the European Commission in office from 22 November 2004 until 31 October 2014. Its president was José Durão Barroso, who presided over 27 other commissioners. On 16 September 2009 Barroso was re-elected by the European Parliament for a further five years and his Commission was approved to take office on 9 February 2010.
Joseph Muscat is a Maltese politician who served as the 13th prime minister of Malta from 2013 to 2020 and leader of the Labour Party from 2008 to 2020.
The European Public Prosecutor's Office (EPPO) is an independent body of the European Union (EU) with juridical personality, established under the Treaty of Lisbon between 23 of the 27 states of the EU following the method of enhanced cooperation. The EPPO was established as a response to the need for a prosecutorial body to combat crimes affecting the financial interests of the European Union (EU). The idea of establishing the EPPO gained momentum with a legislative proposal put forth by the European Commission in 2013. After lengthy negotiations and discussions within the European Council, the European Parliament and Member States, Regulation (EU) 2017/1939 was adopted on October 12, 2017, formalizing the creation of the EPPO. The EPPO Regulation is the EPPO's legal basis, as it outlines the objectives, structure, jurisdiction, and operational procedures. Directive (EU) 2017/1371, also known as the PIF Directive, specifies the criminal offenses affecting the EU's financial interest falling under the EPPO's jurisdiction. The EPPO's primary mandate is to investigate and prosecute offenses such as fraud, corruption, and money laundering that harm the financial interests of the EU, as defined by the PIF Directive. The EPPO represents a significant step towards a more integrated and effective approach to combating transnational crimes within the EU, fostering collaboration and coordination among member states to protect the Union's financial resources. As an independent EU body, the EPPO plays a crucial role in ensuring the rule of law and safeguarding the integrity of the EU's financial system. The EPPO is based in Kirchberg, Luxembourg City alongside the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) and the European Court of Auditors (ECA).
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) rights in Malta rank among the highest in the world. Throughout the late 20th and early 21st centuries, the rights of the LGBT community received more awareness and same-sex sexual activity was legalized on 29 January 1973. The prohibition was already dormant by the 1890s.
Tonio Borg is a conservative Maltese politician who served as the European Commissioner for Health and Consumer Policy replacing John Dalli as member of the College of the European Commission in the second Barroso Commission.
The judiciary of Malta interprets and applies the laws of Malta, to ensure equal justice under law, and to provide a mechanism for dispute resolution. The legal system of Malta is based partially on English law and partly on Continental law, whilst also being subject to European Union law.
Giovanni Kessler is an Italian prosecutor. He was until 2017 the Director-General of the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF). OLAF is a department of the European Commission, but it is independent in its investigative function. Based in Brussels, OLAF is tasked with protecting the financial interests of the European Union by investigating fraud, corruption and any other illegal activities. It also investigates serious matters relating to the discharge of professional duties by members and staff of the EU institutions and it supports the EU institutions, in particular the European Commission, in the development and implementation of anti-fraud legislation and policies.
Helena Dalli is a Maltese politician serving as European Commissioner for Equality since 1 December 2019. She is a member of the Labour Party.
Edward Zammit Lewis is a Maltese politician within the Labour Party. He has been a member of the Maltese House of Representatives since 2013. Following the general elections held on 9 March 2013, won by the Labour Party, he was appointed to serve as Parliamentary Secretary for Competitiveness and Economic Growth. In April 2014, he was appointed Minister for Tourism, a post which he occupied up until June 2017. This was followed by his appointment as Minister for European Affairs and Equality in July 2019 till January 2020, when he was appointed Minister for Justice, Governance and Equality.
Cyrus Engerer is a Maltese Member of European Parliament representing the Labour Party. A gay rights activist, he was the leading spokesperson for the Yes campaign at the 2011 Maltese divorce referendum. In 2021 he was tasked with negotiating the European Parliaments historic resolution on the declaration of the European Union as an LGBTQ Freedom zone, in reaction to the establishment of so called "LGBT-Free zones" in Poland. Engerer later went on to write the European Parliaments resolution which condemned the laws in Hungary which effectively banned "LGBT propaganda" in the vicinity of schools. From 2014 till 2019 Engerer was the Prime Minister's special envoy to the European Union. He was elected as a Member of the European Parliament in November 2020. After he joined the Labour Party the Police of Malta opened an investigation against him, leading to his father's arrest, the opening of a court case against him on spreading pornography and the arrest of his mother on election day. He himself was convicted for spreading revenge porn and received a suspended two years term imprisonment. He is the partner of Partit Laburista's Member of Parliament Randolph De Battista.
Christopher Fearne is a Maltese physician and politician. He was appointed Parliamentary Secretary for Health in April 2014 and Minister for Health since April 2016. In July 2017, the Labour Party elected him as Deputy Leader for Parliamentary Affairs, thus assuming the role of Deputy Prime Minister of Malta and Leader of the House.
Miriam Dalli is a Maltese politician of the Labour Party and former journalist who has been serving as a member of the Parliament of Malta since 2020. She was previously a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) from 2014 until 2020.
The 2019 European Parliament election was held in Malta on 25 May 2019. 8 different political parties took part in the election, of which, only 2 won seats in the European Parliament; the Labour Party and the Nationalist Party, with 4 and 2 seats respectively.
The ninth European Parliament was elected during the 2019 elections and is slated to remain in session until the forthcoming 2024 elections.
Alex Agius Saliba is a Maltese politician, Member of the European Parliament since 2019 for the Labour Party.
A political and institutional crisis within the Republic of Malta followed the uncovering of alleged links between government officials and the 2017 assassination of investigative journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia. The Prime Minister's Chief of Staff Keith Schembri and Minister for Tourism Konrad Mizzi resigned following the arrest of businessman Yorgen Fenech in connection with the murder.
Helen D'Amato is a Maltese politician and educator who was a member of the Parliament of Malta from 1996 to 2008 and Commissioner for Children of Malta from 2010 to 2016. She is a member of the Nationalist Party.
