[WATCH] Cardona refuses to go beyond statement on Daphne Project allegations

Economy minister Chris Cardona this morning refused to comment on reports placing him at the same party as one of the men charged with the murder of journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia, insisting that he had already issued a statement regarding the matter on Sunday night.

"I was very clear and unequivocal in my statement," Cardona said as he entered a government cabinet meeting at Mater Dei Hospital.

A report published in La Repubblica, one of the partners in the Daphne Project consortium, claimed that four months before Caruana Galizia’s murder, Cardona and murder suspect Alfred Degiorgio were among the 40 or so guests at a Bachelor party at a farmhouse in Fawwara.

The report also claimed that a year before the murder, a fuel smuggler who spoke with Caruana Galizia on the phone regarding a story in which he was mentioned, called both Cardona and Degiorgio after speaking with the journalist.

Asked for his reaction to the story, Prime Minister Joseph Muscat said that the reports were already part of the ongoing magisterial inquiry and therefore attest to the fact that an investigation is really and truly underway.

READ ALSO: Witnesses claim Cardona was with Alfred Degiorgio at 2017 party, minister calls reports smears

Echoing a government statement issued last night, Muscat said that while he couldn't ascertain whether what was reported was true, the information had emerged from testimony given for the investigation.

"[The allegations] came from a witness who was giving testimony to the investigating magistrate - this goes to show that an investigation is taking place," Muscat said.

Deputy Prime Minister Chris Fearne said “the discussion had been had on several occasions, including in parliament”, adding that any new allegations needed to be looked into. 

“Minister Cardona said he already answered for the allegations, but he also said that he is at the authorities’ disposal if need be,” Fearne said.