Transport Minister Joe Mizzi insisted this evening that the contract governing the operation of the public transport system will eventually be published, but not before an information campaign to explain what it actually means is carried out.

But opposition MP Francis Zammit Dimech questioned this, stating that refusing to publish the contract before explaining it did not respect the public's intelligence.

Mr Mizzi revealed this during question time in today's parliamentary sitting, which was entirely devoted to a seemingly innocuous question by former transport minister Ċensu Galea on the repainting of buses which were formerly owned by Arriva and painted in its distinctive aquamarine colour.

The question was originally made last December, following reports which revealed that former Arriva buses - then part of a government-owned public transport service - were being sprayed white.

The minister simply answered that at present, the new public transport operator - Spanish company Autobuses Urbanos de León, although it is retaining the name Malta Public Transport in Malta- is repainting the buses at its own expense.

Mr Galea thus said that the answer did not reflect the question, but Mr Mizzi stuck to his guns, noting that in the past, opposition MPs had criticised him when he did the opposite, and ignore developments which occurred since the question was asked.

A series of supplementary questions followed, many of them asked by opposition MP Marthese Portelli, and Mr Mizzi was twice rebuked by Speaker Anġlu Farrugia for addressing her directly in breach of procedure.

She noted that the expression of interest stated that the operator had to introduce new cars and new routes from the outset, and Mr Mizzi argued that he had clearly explained that there would be a soft entry of the new system, with new routes starting to be introduced in summer and with new buses set to arrive next May.

Mr Mizzi repeatedly accused the opposition of being destructive and of seeking to foster confusion over the public transport system.

"But you will not succeed. The people are behind us, not behind you," the minister maintained.

In reaction, Dr Portelli said that in contrast, the opposition actually sought to address any misunderstanding by insisting that the contract should be published, but when challenged, Mr Mizzi refused to indicate exactly when the contract would be published.

 "I will give you the date eventually, don't worry," he maintained.

Dr Portelli called for a point of order when Mr Mizzi began answering her question on whether buses which were not accessible to wheelchair users were still being used by discussing buses' tracking system, but the Speaker noted that he could not go into the minister's reply. Mr Mizzi then noted that some buses were not yet accessible, but the situation would change by this summer.

It was while replying to a question by government MP Anthony Agius Decelis - a predictably soft one concerning bus fares - when Mr Mizzi said that the publication of the contract would be preceded by an explanation by the government, prompting Dr Zammit Dimech to step in.

"You are saying that if you publish the contract before providing explanations, people will not be able to interpret it. If you respect people's intelligence, you allow them to interpret it."

But Mr Mizzi said that this was due to a "destructive" opposition, which, he said, enjoyed the granting of a provisional warrant of prohibitory injunction at the request of a competitor of Autobuses Urbanos de León, which delayed negotiations.

Dr Zammit Dimech raised a point of order, stating that the government could not attribute these legal proceedings to the opposition.

However, the minister stuck to his guns, noting that the provisional warrant was coincidentally granted on Budget Day.

"They [the opposition] welcomed the news; in fact I heard of it through them... when the court decided to turn down the request, no one celebrated."