The Heads of Department, Deputy Deans and Dean of the Faculty for Social Wellbeing expresses its grave concern over Bill Number 104, tabled in Parliament on 28 June 2024 without the consultation that it merited. This Bill establishes Appeals Committees in the laws that regulate the social work, psychology and counselling professions, yet fails to specify the qualifying criterion for the third member of these three-person committees.
The qualifying criteria for all members of such committees must be set out at law in a manner that clearly conveys the intention to uphold the standards of the profession. The proposed constitution of these committees undermines each profession's capacity to self-regulate, because the proposed boards – composed of an advocate, a professional and an unspecified third member – means that the appeals are governed by a board in which each of the profession concerned is a minority. While the Faculty agrees with the possibility of appeal, good governance requires that appeals committees are constituted in line with strictly regulated criteria or they may undermine the very laws they purport to represent.
The Heads, Deputy Deans and Dean support the position already taken on this matter by the Malta Federation of Professional Associations and the Chamber of Psychologists.
Press Release by the Faculty for Social Wellbeing