ACT No. IV of 2013 AN ACT to amend the Criminal Code, and to amend, consequentially, the Civil Code.

I assent.

G EORGE A BELA

(L.S.)

President

14th June, 2013

ACT No. IV of 2013

AN ACT to amend the Criminal Code, and to amend,

consequentially, the Civil Code.

BE IT ENACTED by the President, by and with the advice and

consent of the House of Representatives, in this present Parliament

assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:-

The short title of this Act is the Criminal Code Short title.

(Amendment) Act, 2013, and this Act shall be read and construed as Cap. 9.

one with the Criminal Code, hereinafter referred to as "the Code".

Article 115 of the Code shall be amended as follows

Amendment of

article 115 of

the Code.

(a)

article 115 shall be renumbered as article 115(1);

and

(b) immediately after article 115(1) as renumbered,

there shall be added the following new sub-article

"(2) Notwithstanding any other provision of this

Code or of any other law, when the offence against the

provisions of this article is committed by a person who, at

the time when the offence was committed, held the office

of Minister, Parliamentary Secretary, Member of the House

of Representatives, Mayor or Local Councillor and the

offence involved the abuse of such office, the provisions of

Title VI of Part III of Book Second of this Code shall not

apply to the said person or to any accomplice.".

Article 117 of the Code shall be amended as follows

(a)

in paragraph (a) thereof the words "from eighteen

months to five years" shall be substituted by the words "from

three years to nine years";

(b) in paragraph (b) thereof the words "from nine

months to three years" shall be substituted by the words "from

eighteen months to five years"; and

(c) in paragraph (c) thereof the words "from four to

twelve months" shall be substituted by the words "from nine

months to two years".

Article 118 of the Code shall be re-numbered as article

118(1) and immediately thereafter there shall be added the following

new sub-article

"(2) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Code or

of any other law the provisions of Title VI of Part III of Book

Second of this Code shall not apply to an offence under this

article in respect of the said Member of the House of

Representatives or any accomplice.".

Article 120 of the Code shall be amended as follows

(a)

in sub-article (2) thereof the words "to three years."

shall be substituted by the words "to three years:"; and

(b) immediately after sub-article (2) thereof, there shall

be added the following new proviso

"Provided that when the crime is that referred to in

article 117(c), the punishment shall not exceed eighteen

months imprisonment.".

Sub-article (1) of article 121A of the Code shall be

amended as follows

(a)

the words "of any person referred to in the preceding

articles of this sub-title" shall be substituted by the words "of

any person referred to in the preceding articles of this sub-title

and of any other person"; and

(b) the words "from three months to eighteen months"

shall be substituted by the words "from three years to six years".

In article 121B of the Code, the words "under the Amendment of

article 121B of

preceding articles of this sub-title" shall be deleted.

the Code.

Article 127 of the Code shall be amended as follows

Amendment of

article 127 of

the Code.

(a) the present article shall be re-numbered as sub-article (1)

thereof; and

(b) immediately after sub-article (1) thereof as re-numbered,

there shall be added the following new sub-article

''(2) The provisions of sub-article (1) shall, mutatis

mutandis, also apply to and in relation to any employee or other

person when directing or working in any capacity for or on

behalf of a natural or legal person operating in the private sector

who knowingly, in the course of his business activities, directly

or through an intermediary and in breach of his duties, conducts

himself in any manner provided for in the said sub-article.".

Immediately after article 29 of the Fisheries Conservation Consequential

and Management Act, there shall be added the following new article: amendment

the Fisheries

Conservation

and

" Activities other

(1) The licence holder and, or the master

Management

than those

of a vessel shall not use the said vessel in connection

Act.

prescribed in the

with any trade, business or calling, whether in the

licence.

territorial or inland waters of Malta or outside the

territorial or inland waters of Malta, for the purpose of

carrying on any trade, business or calling for which the

said vessel is not licenced.

(2) Whosoever contravenes the provisions of

sub-article (1) shall be liable on conviction

(a)

if the unlicenced activity consists in

the carriage of dangerous and polluting products

including fuel and other petroleum products, to

the punishment of imprisonment of not less than

one year and not exceeding three years and to a

fine (multa) of not less than ten thousand euro

(€10,000) but not exceeding two hundred and

fifty thousand euro (€250,000) or to both such

fine and imprisonment;

(b) in all other cases, to imprisonment

not exceeding two years and to a fine (multa) of

not less than five hundred euro (€500) but not

exceeding ten thousand euro (€10,000) or to both

such fine and imprisonment,

without prejudice to any other punishment that

may be applicable under any other law.

(3) The provisions of articles 121D, 248E(4)

and 328K of the Criminal Code shall, mutatis

mutandis, apply to an offence referred to in sub-article

(1).

(4) In this article, the word "petroleum" shall

have the same meaning as assigned to it under the

Enemalta Act.".

10. In article 1051A of the Civil Code immediately after sub-

article (7) there shall be added the following new sub-article

"(8) Prescription may not be set up against the

Government or against a Local Council or against a body

corporate established by law in an action to recover damages

under this article based on an act of corruption committed by the

defendant through abuse of his office whilst holding the office

of Minister, Parliamentary Secretary, Member of the House of

Representatives, Mayor or Local Councillor.".

Passed by the House of Representatives at Sitting No. 28 of the

10th June, 2013.

A NĠLU F ARRUGIA

Speaker

R AYMOND S CICLUNA

Clerk to the House of Representatives