Matthew Doyle, a former communications adviser to UK Labour prime ministers Tony Blair and Keir Starmer, is receiving €28,000 from Maltese taxpayers as a part-time consultant to the Malta Film Commission.
According to information provided in Parliament, Doyle is receiving €4,000 per month for his consultancy role, which focuses on promoting Malta’s film industry in the United States. The arrangement has drawn scrutiny after Culture Minister Owen Bonnici declined to publish details of Doyle’s contract, citing confidentiality.
Bonnici confirmed in parliament, following questions by PN MP Julie Zahra, that the seven-month consultancy was awarded by the film commissioner, Johann Grech, but refused to specify the number of hours Doyle was expected to work or whether the contract was ongoing. Doyle is understood to be based outside Malta and visits the island only rarely.
The engagement adds to a series of opaque consultancy agreements linked to the Malta Film Commission.
Commissioner Grech, who oversees the body, has faced repeated criticism for his handling of public funds and for refusing multiple Freedom of Information requests by The Shift concerning the Commission’s spending.
The agency’s expenditure has come under particular scrutiny over its annual film festival – the Mediterrane Film Festival – which costs Maltese taxpayers an estimated €5 million for a single event.
Earlier this year, The Shift reported that a multi-million-euro contract awarded to a local events company, related to the festival, was approved only after the event had already taken place.
Opposition MPs have accused the ministry of a lack of transparency over public procurement, noting that several suppliers linked to the festival have previously provided services to the Labour Party during election campaigns.
No detailed breakdown of the millions spent on the festivals has been published.