New cash handout for civil servants in March

As the Labour government edges closer to general elections, the machinery of state patronage has once again been switched on. A new cash handout for long-serving civil servants is set to be rolled out in March, ensuring that thousands of public employees receive extra money just as the country enters a prolonged electoral season.

Civil servants with more than 20 years’ service will become entitled to a new annual payment, ranging from €300 to €1,000. Branded by the government as a “long service allowance”, the payment is being sold as a reward for loyalty. In reality, it represents yet another indiscriminate distribution of public funds aimed at securing political support.

The allowance was quietly included in a new five-year collective agreement signed with public sector unions, avoiding public scrutiny. Eligibility is universal across the public service, irrespective of grade, performance or productivity. Even the disciplined forces have been folded into the scheme, extending the handout to every member of the army and police.

Civil servants with 20 to 25 years’ service will receive €300 annually, rising to €500 for those with 25 to 30 years. Those with more than 35 years on the public payroll will be paid €1,000 a year, even if part of that time was spent seconded to other government entities.

The payments come on top of existing salaries, bonuses and allowances – benefits unmatched in the private sector, where workers face rising costs without guaranteed State largesse.

The government has so far kept conspicuously quiet about the scheme, but an aggressive public relations push is widely expected as election day draws nearer. The objective is to try to convert hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of euro in public money into electoral advantage.

This new handout fits a now-familiar Labour playbook.

Over the past year, the government has intensified its reliance on cash transfers and vouchers to manufacture consent and shore up support, particularly among low income households and politically sensitive groups.

Energy vouchers, tax refund cheques and one-off payments have become tools of political messaging rather than economic policy.

In some cases, tax refund cheques were sent even to individuals who pay no tax at all or are still in full time education – underscoring how little the scheme has to do with fiscal logic. The main aim is the creation of a short-term feel-good factor and the artificial stimulation of the economy during election cycles.

The tactic was particularly evident during the 2024 European Parliament elections, when tax refund cheques of between €60 and €140 were distributed just days before voting.

Yet even this blunt approach failed to fully deliver, with Prime Minister Robert Abela suffering a significant haemorrhage of votes.