As Malta geared up for the most recent general election on 30 May, there was a conspicuous - and at that point, unannounced - absence in the list of PN candidates when the Electoral Commission's nomination period closed.

That same evening, Mario de Marco addressed a PN activity in Valletta, sharing the news that he would not be seeking re-election.

"It wasn't really a last minute decision," de Marco said when asked what led him to taking the decision.  He continued that he had been thinking about it for a while and hoped to officially share his decision as the legislature came into its final year - but the decision to call the election early scuppered his timing.

"It was anything but an easy decision. It was much, much harder than I thought, because the moment an election is called is the moment where your adrenaline starts rushing.  The temptation to do one more was there, but the danger is that one more then leads to another one more next time, and you never draw the line," he said.

"I had to be hard on myself.  It wasn't easy... I described it like having to leave a woman you are still in love with," he added.

He said he would miss the debates, the legal analysis of Bills, and the parliamentary committees - particularly the Foreign Affairs Committee which he said he always found interesting.  He said, though, that he wouldn't miss the lack of resources in Parliament, and the "lack of gravitas" that Parliament is sometimes given.

This all said, de Marco said that he does not wish to totally withdraw from public life, but rather to try and do politics in a different way and to contribute where he can, be it perhaps in tourism or in awareness on facial paralysis.

What's next then?

"God knows what's next, but I definitely want to keep giving a helping hand to the party where I can," he said.

But he wants to see politics from beyond a party perspective too.

"This country has a lot going for it, but sometimes we don't talk to each other - we shout at each other; and when we shout at each other, people don't listen.  I think we all need to make an effort to try and get this country to listen," he said.

"There's too much divide - too much we are right and you are wrong. Nobody has the monopoly of the truth.  No party, no politician.  I want to try and use my experience within frontline politics to perhaps try and get people to talk to each other more within a political spectrum," he said.

The rest of the interview about the various stages of Mario de Marco's career can be found in links below

Mario de Marco: 23 years as an MP, health challenges and when 'nobody was a hero' in the PN

Mario de Marco (2) 2003 to 2013: A decade in government and a PM hard done by history 

Mario de Marco (3) 2013: A big defeat, a run for party leadership, and no regrets 

2014 (4): Mario de Marco's 'biggest disappointment' in politics 

2015 (5): Mario de Marco's health challenges 

Mario de Marco 2017 to 2022 (6): 'Nobody was a hero back then'