Christopher Fearne (born 12 March 1963) is a Maltese physician and politician. He was appointed Parliamentary Secretary for Health in April 2014 and Minister for Health since April 2016. In July 2017, the
Labour Party elected him as Deputy Leader for Parliamentary Affairs, thus assuming the role of
Deputy Prime Minister of Malta
The Deputy Prime Minister of Malta ( mt, Viċi Prim Ministru) is the deputy head of government and second-most senior officer in the Government of Malta after the Prime Minister of Malta, being a minister in his own right.
Constitutional fun ...
and Leader of the House.
Education
Fearne received his formal education at
St. Aloysius College and at the University of Malta. As a student, Fearne was involved in a number of youth organizations. He served as secretary general of the Maltese Federation of Youth Organisations, officer within the University Students’ Council, KSU, and in the
Malta Medical Students' Association
The University of Malta (, UM, formerly UOM) is a higher education institution in Malta. It offers undergraduate bachelor's degrees, postgraduate master's degrees and postgraduate doctorates. It is a member of the European University Associa ...
.
He qualified in Medicine and Surgery in 1987, becoming a Fellow of The
Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh
The Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh (RCSEd) is a professional organisation of surgeons. The College has seven active faculties, covering a broad spectrum of surgical, dental, and other medical practices. Its main campus is located o ...
. He worked and studied in a number of children's hospitals in England, including
Alder Hey Children's Hospital
Alder Hey Children's Hospital is a children's hospital and NHS foundation trust in West Derby, Liverpool, England. It is one of the largest children's hospitals in the United Kingdom, and one of several specialist hospitals within the Liverpool ...
in Liverpool, and
Great Ormond Street Hospital
Great Ormond Street Hospital (informally GOSH or Great Ormond Street, formerly the Hospital for Sick Children) is a children's hospital located in the Bloomsbury area of the London Borough of Camden, and a part of Great Ormond Street Hospit ...
in London.
Medical career
Prior to his appointment as Parliamentary Secretary for Health in April 2014, he worked as a Consultant Paediatric Surgeon and Clinical Chairman at
Mater Dei Hospital
Mater Dei Hospital (MDH; mt, Sptar Mater Dei), also known simply as ''Mater Dei'', is an acute general and teaching hospital in Msida, Malta. It was opened in 2007, replacing St. Luke's Hospital. It is a public hospital affiliated to the Univers ...
.
He is a Member of Parliament for the Labour Party and was the chairman of the Foreign and European Affairs Committee at the
Maltese House of Representatives
The Parliament of Malta ( mt, Il-Parlament ta' Malta) is the constitutional legislative body in Malta, located in Valletta. The parliament is unicameral, with a democratically elected House of Representatives and the President of Malta. By const ...
.
[
Fearne has worked as a doctor and surgeon since 1987. He was also a lecturer in paediatric surgery at the ]University of Malta
The University of Malta (, UM, formerly UOM) is a higher education institution in Malta. It offers undergraduate bachelor's degrees, postgraduate master's degrees and postgraduate doctorates. It is a member of the European University Association ...
and an examiner at its medical school. Fearne is a founding director of the Malta Institute for Medical Education and the chairperson of Celebrities for Kids, a voluntary NGO promoting children's rights.
Political career
Fearne was elected to the House of Representatives in March 2013 following the electoral victory of the Labour Party in that general election. Following a reshuffle in the cabinet in April 2014 by Prime Minister Joseph Muscat
Joseph Muscat (born 22 January 1974) is a Maltese politician who served as the prime minister of Malta from 2013 to 2020, and as the leader of the Labour Party from June 2008 to January 2020.
Muscat was re-elected as prime minister in the ...
, Fearne was appointed Parliamentary Secretary for Health under the office of the Minister for Energy and Health Konrad Mizzi. This was the first position he held as part of the Government of Malta. Fearne was appointed Minister of Health in April 2016.
On 15 July 2017, Fearne was elected as the Deputy Leader for Parliamentary Affairs of the Labour Party, succeeding Louis Grech
Louis Grech (born 22 March 1947) is a Malta, Maltese politician who served as Deputy Prime Minister of Malta, as well as Minister of European Affairs. He also served as Deputy Leader for Parliamentary Affairs of the Malta Labour Party, Labour Pa ...
, and following his election as Deputy Leader for Parliamentary Affairs, Chris Fearne was sworn in as the Deputy Prime Minister of Malta
The Deputy Prime Minister of Malta ( mt, Viċi Prim Ministru) is the deputy head of government and second-most senior officer in the Government of Malta after the Prime Minister of Malta, being a minister in his own right.
Constitutional fun ...
.
Fearne said that the damage done to Malta from the resignations following the case of Daphne Caruana Galizia
Daphne Anne Caruana Galizia (; 26 August 1964 – 16 October 2017) was a Maltese writer, journalist, blogger and anti-corruption activist, who reported on political events in Malta. In particular, she focused on investigative journalism, repor ...
was almost irreparable.
Following the announcement of the resignation of Joseph Muscat
Joseph Muscat (born 22 January 1974) is a Maltese politician who served as the prime minister of Malta from 2013 to 2020, and as the leader of the Labour Party from June 2008 to January 2020.
Muscat was re-elected as prime minister in the ...
from Prime Minister of Malta
The prime minister of Malta ( mt, Prim Ministru ta' Malta) is the head of government, which is the highest official of Malta. The Prime Minister chairs Cabinet meetings, and selects its ministers to serve in their respective portfolios. The P ...
and Leader of the Labour party, Fearne was the first Member of Parliament
A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members o ...
to officially express his intention of contesting for the vacated role. Fearne was endorsed by many fellow MPs. Fearne would run for Leader of the Partit Laburista, a position which would effectively see him sworn as prime minister of Malta.
Minister of Health
On 27 February 2019 Fearne said that abortion was the reason why Malta dropped 10 places in the Public Service Ranking of the Euro health consumer index, although the official report did not match up with this claim.
On 22 April, as Health Minister, Fearne announced the start of a project of €40 million for a new "health hub" in Raħal Ġdid, which would act as a regional medical centre. Fearne explained that the total cost includes €25 million for the infrastructure, and that €33 million are funded by the European Union
The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been de ...
.
On 14 May 2019 Fearne announced that the Government of Malta would be investing €3 million in cancer treatment. He announced that there would be the introduction of PD-1 inhibitors in the government's formulary at the Oncology Centre at Mater Dei Hospital
Mater Dei Hospital (MDH; mt, Sptar Mater Dei), also known simply as ''Mater Dei'', is an acute general and teaching hospital in Msida, Malta. It was opened in 2007, replacing St. Luke's Hospital. It is a public hospital affiliated to the Univers ...
.
On 12 September 2019 Fearne launched a three-year plan to reinstate health centres in every locality where primary health care would be prioritised. Reportedly, Fearne's Ministry was looking to open a new health centre in Żabbar
Żabbar ( mt, Ħaż-Żabbar, ), also known as Città Hompesch, is a city in the South Eastern Region of Malta. It is the sixth largest city in the country, with a population of 15,404 as of March 2014. Originally a part of Żejtun, Żabbar was gr ...
and refurbish the one in Żejtun
Żejtun ( mt, Iż-Żejtun ) is a city in the South Eastern Region of Malta, with a population of 11,218 at end 2016. Żejtun is traditionally known as Città Beland, a title conferred by the grandmaster of the Order of the Knights of Malta, F ...
by mid-October 2019, and in 2020 the Ministry would open new ones in Valletta
Valletta (, mt, il-Belt Valletta, ) is an administrative unit and capital of Malta. Located on the main island, between Marsamxett Harbour to the west and the Grand Harbour to the east, its population within administrative limits in 2014 wa ...
, Marsaxlokk
Marsaxlokk () is a small, traditional fishing village in the South Eastern Region of Malta. It has a harbour, and is a tourist attraction known for its views, fishermen and history. As at March 2014, the village had a population of 3,534. The ...
and Vittoriosa
Birgu ( mt, Il-Birgu , it, Vittoriosa), also known by its title Città Vittoriosa ("''Victorious City''"), is an old fortified city on the south side of the Grand Harbour in the South Eastern Region of Malta. The city occupies a promontory of ...
, refurbish Għaxaq
Għaxaq ( mt, Ħal Għaxaq, ) is a village in the Southern Region of Malta, with a population of 4,722 people as of March 2014. It is mainly a residential area surrounded by land used for agricultural purposes. The village's name is probably re ...
, Santa Luċija
Santa Luċija ( en, Saint Lucia) is a village in the Southern Region of Malta, with a population of 2,997 as of March 2014. It is one of the modern towns developed in Malta during the 20th century. By virtue of an article which appeared in Gove ...
and Tarxien
Tarxien ( mt, Ħal Tarxien) is a town in the South Eastern Region of Malta. Its population stood at 8583 in March 2014.
The town is most notable for the Tarxien Temples, a megalithic temple complex which is among the oldest freestanding structu ...
and seek for new premises in Kalkara
Kalkara ( mt, Il-Kalkara) is a village in the South Eastern Region of Malta, with a population of 3,014 as of March 2014. The name is derived from the Latin word for lime (Calce), and it is believed that there was a lime kiln present there sin ...
and Ħamrun
Hamrun (; ) is a town in the Southern Region of Malta, with a population of 9,244 as of March 2014.
The people
The townspeople are traditionally known as ''Tas-Sikkina'' (literally meaning 'of the knife' or 'those who carry a knife') or as '' ...
.
Since 2020, Fearne has also been a member of the Global Leaders Group on Antimicrobial Resistance The Global Leaders Group on Antimicrobial Resistance consists of world leaders and experts from across sectors working together to accelerate political action on antimicrobial resistance (AMR).
The Group performs an independent global advisory and ...
, co-chaired by prime ministers Sheikh Hasina
Sheikh Hasina Wazed (''née'' Sheikh Hasina ; ; bn, শেখ হাসিনা ওয়াজেদ, Shēkh Hasinā, , born 28 September 1947) is a Bangladeshi politician who has served as the Prime Minister of Bangladesh since January 2 ...
and Mia Mottley
Mia Amor Mottley, (born 1 October 1965) is a Barbadian politician and attorney who has served as the eighth prime minister of Barbados since 2018 and as Leader of the Barbados Labour Party (BLP) since 2008. Mottley is the first woman to hold ...
.
Medicine pricing transparency
Fearne spearheaded the Valletta Declaration initiative. Agreed upon in 2017, during the Maltese Presidency of the Council of the EU, the Valletta Declaration consisted of ten EU Member States: Malta, Italy, Greece, Cyprus, Romania, Spain, Portugal, Croatia, Ireland and Slovenia, and aimed at establishing a technical and political cooperation on cross-border health matters such as anti-microbial resistance and price transparency of innovative medicines.
Speaking to Politico, Fearne said that if "we can go to the industry as a group and say that it’s no longer acceptable to have this secrecy on any negotiating procedure, then the industry will have to take note."
Pharmaceutical companies objected to the Malta-led proposal. At that stage, pharmaceutical companies individually negotiated the supplies of medicines including those medicines deemed to be innovative and which could cure rare diseases. According to Fearne pharma companies are at an advantage position as countries are not in a position to divulge the prices they are paying for the medicines procured. The medicines in question were prohibitively expensive for most national health services and their procurement threatens the sustainability of systems.
According to Fearne, “the model that we will be proposing (...) is that member states which are rovidingfunds should aim to go into agreement with the industry to share the benefits when there are new drugs on the market. The industry wants and needs support from member states because it’s evident that industry on its own is not going in for the risk of developing new antibiotics.
While speaking at a Politico Healthcare summit in July 2019, in Amsterdam, Fearne called on his counterparts to push for new rule at European level to share drug prices among Member States. Fearne and the Valletta Declaration group countered the pharmaceutical industry arguments that price transparency leads to higher prices. He was quote saying that “the industry tells us that price transparency would push prices up. Let’s be frank, it’s not true”.
Controversies
Fearne was criticised by the local media regarding appointments to the Foundation for Medical Services. A party activist, Carmen Ciantar, was given a financial package of €104,000 on her appointment as FMS CEO.
Ciantar had close ties to Fearne, being one of his personal electoral campaign managers. Fearne was alleged to be in a relationship with Ciantar, though these allegations were later withdrawn.
Family
Fearne and his wife Astrid have three children: Dawn, Julian, and Rafael.DPM.gov.mt
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References
External links
Hon. Christopher Fearne MP - Parliamentary Secretary for Health
– Parliament of Malta
, -
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fearne, Chris
University of Malta alumni
Labour Party (Malta) politicians
Living people
Maltese paediatricians
Members of the House of Representatives of Malta
University of Malta academic personnel
1963 births
People from Attard
Deputy Prime Ministers of Malta
Government ministers of Malta
21st-century Maltese physicians
20th-century Maltese physicians
21st-century Maltese politicians