Updated | Busuttil lambasts Muscat’s reaction to Brexit: ‘Populist with echoes of Farage’

Opposition leader Simon Busuttil has taken to questioning the Prime Minister’s EU conviction, accusing Joseph Muscat of taking a populist stance to the Brexit referendum.

Addressing the PN’s current batch of electoral candidates, Busuttil accused Muscat of sending “conflicting message”.

“He gave conflicting messages to the result – on one hand insinuating that he agrees with the decision of the British people, and on the other warning that it would be suicidal for Malta to leave the EU,” Busuttil said. “Muscat is wearing a pro-EU mask, but sometimes the mask slips. Will the real Joseph Muscat please stand up?”

Muscat, who has expressed disappointment over the Brexit result, has told reporters that Malta has lost an important ally in the European Union but also said that the will of the electorate had to be respected. Less than 12 hours from the announcement of the result, Muscat was quick to extinguish talk of holding a referendum in Malta, arguing that Malta exiting the EU would be “tantamount to suicide”.

Busuttil has already dubbed Muscat “a Eurosceptic” on Twitter after his political opponent said that talk of the now infamous Article 50 was “irrelevant” for EU citizens who were more concerned over the real issues.

Then, during a national briefing with reporters in Brussels, Muscat argued that challenging the European Union on issues that made citizens unhappy was not a sign of EU-scepticism but about being a realist.

Busuttil however argued that Muscat’s self-description as a ‘euro-realist’ has echoes of UKIP leader Nigel Farage and former London mayor Boris Johnson – who both campaigned for a Brexit – and of outgoing UK PM David Cameron.

Indeed, Busuttil also had harsh words for the British premier, accusing him of placing the UK’s national interest on the backburner when he pledged a referendum on EU membership.

"The referendum was in his political intersts, not in the national interest" he said, adding that he respects, but disagrees, with the outcome of the vote. 

The Labour Party rubbished Busuttil’s comparison of Muscat to Farage as “his latest gem…that deserves the top spot for the most shallow post-Brexit analysis”.

“He joins a small political elite in denial, without a clue on how the current situation came about and how to react to it,” the PL said in a brief statement. “The Opposition leader is simply out of touch with the lives of hardworking families who feel alienated by politicians like himself. He is also out of touch with the main line of thought of many European leaders.

“Simon Busuttil: fail.”

In his speech, Busuttil also urged Muscat to sack his chief of staff Keith Schembri and minister Konrad Mizzi – who have both been revealed to own offshore Panama companies – before Malta takes up the EU rotating presidency for the first time at the beginning of 2017.

“How can Muscat lead the EU presidency with Mizzi and Schembri by his side? He will be laughed at and ridiculed. If he wants to be ridiculed, then that’s up to him, but he’ll be ridiculing the entire country.”

The PN leader recounted how EU leaders at this week’s European People’s Party Summit had approached him to question Mizzi’s current status.

“They were shocked that he was still a minister; him, Mizzi and Muscat himself would have resigned in a normal European country,” he said. “Muscat is wrong to believe that [Panamagate] will disappear if he ignores it and tries to sweep it under the carpet.”

He claimed that Mizzi is still the de facto energy minister, noting that he had recently delivered a speech in Parliament on the Water Services’ Corporation.

“The fact that he’s speaking about the water services in Parliament shows that Muscat’s reshuffle [that stripped Mizzi of his energy and health portfolios] was a farce. We refused to debate with Mizzi in the House, because we didn’t want to legitimise him.”

‘New Central Bank governor not qualified’

Busuttil lashed out at the Central Bank’s new governor Mario Vella, suggesting that his appointment was a nepotistic one.

“Mario Vella isn’t qualified in monetary affairs; the only criterion he satisfied was that he is close to the Prime Minister,” he said of the former Malta Enterprise chairman and Labour Party president.

Vella was appointed after nominee and deputy governor Alfred Mifsud turned down the nomination since bribery allegations against him became the subject of a police investigation.

Busuttil insisted that Mifsud must also resign as deputy governor, and questioned why Muscat had not spoken out when the bribery allegations first surfaced.

“Mifsud rescinded his nomination himself, but Muscat has yet to give his opinion on the matter,” he said.