Speech on judicial review and on the Blue Sisters saga

Abstract

I am going to start with my main message: that we are still suffering from the effects of the Blue Sisters case and its aftermath, this being Act 8 of 1981. I shall proceed to explain. For many years I’ve insisted with our students that 1. The Law Courts are the ultimate bastions of legality. They are society’s last line of defence against injustice, illegality and abuse of power. Unlike our MPs, the members of the judiciary are not democratically elected, and one finds literature criticising them for this, questioning their powers given that they are not the Peoples’ elected representatives. My reply to that is simple: our Judiciary are not politicians; they do not seek or require a popular mandate, which means that they have less to distract them from their work and their priorities are different. (2) and I keep saying this, Government, that is, the Executive arm of the State is extremely powerful: executive government can provide opportunities for people to grow, or stifle their growth through illegality and injustice. Tonio’s book which we are launching today is proof of this: the Executive proved to be far too powerful, and the Blue Sisters were expelled. Now the government owns a building, which is used as an old peoples’ home, and is managed by a private company – I wonder what Sir Adriano Dingli and Emilia Zammit Clapp would think of this, if they were alive today, given that the donation was made specifically for the building to be used as a hospital for the treatment of sick persons? Such is the Executive’s power and, let’s face it, the matter is long forgotten by most people. [Incidentally this makes such a book even more important: such matters should not be forgotten: the imposition of a fine of LM1000 on any and every advocate in excess of three signing a judicial act should not be forgotten – to give but one example].