Minister for Home Affairs and National Security Manuel Mallia this evening said that in hindsight, his decision to use members from the police corps as waiting staff for a European Broadcasting Unit (EBU) event “would be different.”

Despite this admission, Dr Mallia said that “frankly, I see nothing wrong in what was done.”

Dr Mallia reassured the Opposition benches that the president of the EBU was aware that the waiting staff were serving members of the police corps.

Asked whether he had personally made the request for the police to provide the service, Dr Mallia said that a minister does not get into the “nitty gritty” of such decisions.

“I did not ask the police to serve as waiters,” Dr Mallia said.

The minister assured parliament that it was “a fantastic night,” with both the food and the service being up to scratch. He said that all the police were remunerated for the service offered.

The whole set-up was proposed by the Police Commissioner, Dr Mallia said.

He lambasted the “orchestrated attacks” by the Opposition leader’s party, declaring that “I will not be stopped by these attacks.”

Dr Mallia alluded to similar happenings under the previous administration,  with kitchen staff at the St Vincent de Paul having allegedly offered outside catering services under the previous administration.