Parnis was born in
Paola to Michael and Doris Caruana. He grew up there. He attended Paola Primary School and his secondary education at St. Elias College in
Santa Venera. In 2007 he married Dorianne née Cauchi, with whom he had one son, Jacob. Parnis worked as a health supervisor and as an assistant social worker to elderly residents at the St. Vincent De Paul Residence. In 1991 he was bequeathed a small piece of land in
St Paul’s Bay by will of a childless elderly couple, as he declared in Parliament in 2006. While in politics, Parnis was also a television and radio presenter, discussing current and social affairs. In 2006 Parnis presented the radio program (
Problems of the Heart) on PL-owned
One Radio, as well as the television programs (
You are not alone), (
Words and Facts), and on
Smash Television. He stopped his media engagements after the Party decided that no election candidates should host media shows.
Political career From 1994 to 1998, Parnis served as mayor of
Paola. He was then elected member of the
Maltese Parliament in 1998, 2003, 2008, 2013 and 2017. He always ran for the 4th electoral district, including
Gudja,
Paola,
Għaxaq,
Marsa (Trinity Parish Church area),
Santa Luċija,
Fgura (Mater Bon Consigli), and
Tarxien. From 2013 to 2017, Parnis advocated for the
Paola Square Project and an environmental study on
Wied Blandun. Parnis also contributed significantly to other projects such as the university buildings in
Bormla (lent out to the Sadeen Group's private
American University of Malta) and
Inwadar Park. From 2013 to 2017, he also held the role of Chairman of the Committee on Bills. Parnis was left out of government in November 2020, following criticism of his inability to respond to the COVID-19 crisis and its impact on public elderly homes, as Malta recorded the second-highest rate of mortality in care homes in Europe. Parnis famously gifted a
jam roly-poly slice to all elderly residents with the word "courage" printed on its plastic wrapping. He then took up a job at
Infrastructure Malta. • 2017 – : Member of Parliament (in government), Chair person of consultative council for the south of Malta.
Death Parnis died of cancer == Electoral results ==