Fostering good working relationships with institutions of oversight

On Thursday 30 January 2025, an event was organised by the Office of the Principal Permanent Secretary titled “Insaħħu l-ħidma ta' bejnietna". This forum brought together the Parliamentary Ombudsman, the Auditor General and Permanent Secretaries. As the event's theme implies, the colloquium focused on strengthening the existent cooperation between the Public Administration and these two institutions of oversight, as well as to explore ways to further strengthen this collaboration.

The colloquium was moderated by Prof Edward Warrington. In his prelude, it was established that the three institutions worked towards a common aim: to achieve higher levels of good governance in public service delivery, enhancing accountability in the process.

Subsequently, Permanent Secretaries were addressed by the Principal Permanent Secretary, the Auditor General and the Parliamentary Ombudsman. Following these speeches, a round table discussion was initiated. The discussion focused on answering four questions posed by Prof Warrington:

• What can hinder cooperation between the Public Administration and institutions of oversight?
• What action can be taken to strengthen this cooperation?
• What do institutions of oversight expect from the Public Administration and vice versa?
• Whether it was considered necessary that this type of colloquium be extended to other entities.

The responses by Permanent Secretaries indicated their propensity to cooperate with institutions of oversight and to take necessary action to strengthen this cooperation, being aware of the benefits reaped for the Public Administration and the public. The discussion also pointed towards the need for similar colloquiums, also involving other entities.