The Office of the Prime Minister has contacted the Institute of Maltese Journalists and the Journalists’ Committee following statements they made with regard to a complaint filed by One News head Miriam Dalli.

Ms Dalli claimed that the Prime Minister’s staff had prevented a One News reporter from asking questions during a press conference in Parliament on Wednesday.

With regard to the press conference, the OPM said that the time allocated to a press conference that is transmitted live cannot be exceeded, and this is why the number of questions allowed was reduced to one question each from the five journalists. The journalists were then given the opportunity to ask the Prime Minister for comments once the broadcasting time was over.

This was explained to the journalists present before the press conference started and nobody had objected, the OPM said. The questions allowed during the live transmission were put by journalists representing RTK, Kullhadd (two questions and a supplementary), The Times, The Malta Independent and NET TV.

The OPM said that the In-Nazzjon journalist expressed a wish to ask a question but he was not allowed to do so, while the journalists from l-orizzont did not show any interest in asking a question. The One News and Kullhadd journalists arrived after this arrangement had already been explained.

As the Prime Minister was answering the last question, the One News journalist “began to protest and interrupt in an unprofessional way”, the OPM said. At that point, the OPM’s Media and Communications Officer tried to explain that the journalist would have an opportunity to obtain a comment from the Prime Minister after the live press conference.

At the end of the conference, the One News journalist “ran towards the Prime Minister in an imprudent and aggressive way and tried to stop the Prime Minister from entering his office,” the OPM said.

The OPM statement concluded by saying that while it is committed to give access to information, it expects professional and prudent behaviour from all journalists.