PM: NAO report ‘absolves me’ of any involvement in hospitals deal

Prime Minister Robert Abela said the latest NAO report on the hospitals concession absolves him from any involvement in the deal.

“The report refutes any claim made by Bernard Grech and the opposition on my involvement in the concession,” Abela told the House on Monday afternoon.

Earlier, the third NAO report on the hospitals concession was tabled in parliament. Among other findings, the report outlines how former minister Konrad Mizzi had granted VGH authorisation to transfer the hospitals concession to Steward Healthcare before seeking Cabinet’s endorsement.

Mizzi is also accused of “misleading” Cabinet on the side agreement he concluded with Steward by which government would be liable to pay the company €100 million if a court annulled the contract.

The PM’s speech was riddled with a barrage of point of orders from the Opposition benches, who complained Abela was not keeping in line with the parliamentary agenda.

At the start of the parliamentary sitting, government Whip Andy Ellul proposed today’s sitting be suspended so the House discusses the report. The Opposition Whip Robert Cutajar turned down the request, proposing the comprehensive report be discussed on Tuesday and Wednesday given its length. The government refused.

Soldiering on, the PM said claims by the opposition that he was involved in the deal were refuted by the report.

“Allegations are easy to utter, but this report shows they are not true,” Abela said. “An opposition dominated by elements of extremism.”

The PM said the opposition can no longer “spin” facts which suit its political agenda.

“In order to save his political career, Bernard Grech was trying to make up allegations and claims and now we know they were not true,” he said. “It was the auditor general himself who did not waste any time with these baseless facts.”

Abela was referring to a request made last week by the PN for the police to investigate the hospitals concession.

“The report makes a clear distinction between me, Chris Fearne and Clyde Caruana, and others involved in the deal,” Abela said. “Grech and his friends filed the report because he knew the auditor report would corner him.”

He defended his administration since he was made leader in 2020, saying it has always strived to ensure the hospitals are back in government’s control. “I have already asked for an apology on what was revealed about the concession, and it was I who asked the contract be rescinded.”

“We were clear with Steward, the handover of the hospitals be on the government’s terms, but what did they do? The opposition constantly tried to disrupt us,” the PM insisted. “There were challenges with the concession, and last year we were given the people’s trust to come up with solutions.”

He also said the report confirms he was only privy to all details of the concession when he became PM.

At the beginning of the speech Abela accused the opposition of trying to shy away from a debate on the report.

“I have a duty to explain to people, and the opposition does not want that,” he said.