[WATCH] Chris Fearne chooses wait-and-see attitude on Vitals hospitals deal

Health Minister Chris Fearne will wait for the outcome of a magisterial inquiry and a court case before passing judgement on the Vitals hospitals deal that is mired in corruption claims.

The government is currently locked in talks with the current owners of the hospitals concession, Steward Health Care, after the American company asked to renegotiate aspects of the deal it acquired from VGH.

The situation has become more complicated after Steward admitted in court documents that it submitted as part of ongoing litigation with third parties that the VGH deal was vitiated and corrupt.

The Opposition has called on the government to withdraw from the deal and take back the Gozo, St Luke's and Karin Grech hospitals.

Speaking to MaltaToday outside Castille on Monday morning after leaving a Cabinet meeting, Fearne insisted he will wait for the magisterial inquiry and an ongoing court case initiated by former PN leader Adrian Delia to have the contract rescinded.

Fearne stuck to his line when asked whether the hospitals contract was a ploy by former prime minister Joseph Muscat.

On Sunday, it was revealed that in 2020 Muscat received €60,000 from a Swiss company that had received millions from Steward Health Care when it took over the VGH hospitals deal.

Muscat has denied any wrongdoing, insisting the payments were for consultancy work he did for the Swiss company that was unrelated to any government project. The consultancy work happened in 2020, while the Swiss company was involved with Steward Health Care two years earlier.

READ MORE: Joseph Muscat received €60,000 from Swiss firm linked to Steward Healthcare

Asked by MaltaToday whether the Nationalist Party was correct in its assessment that the government was allowing a situation where Steward continued to be paid more and more money, Energy Minister Miriam Dalli said the government was not "tolerating the situation and is working to see what the best way forward is."

Pressed further on Muscat's responsibility in the deal Dalli said: "The government is looking into the contract to determine the best way forward."

VGH went belly-up and failed to adhere to its commitments but despite the promise of fresh investment by Steward, there has been very little progress and key deadlines have been missed.