Competitiveness and Communications Minister Censu has written the third letter in a week to the Permanent Commission against Corruption, calling on it to investigate corruption claims by the opposition at the Malta Maritime Authority, which falls in his portfolio.

Mr Galea first wrote last Monday. He told commission chairman Judge Albert Manche that on 5 June Labour MP Joe Mizzi claimed in parliament that there had been abuses at the authority, where maritime licence applicants had been asked to pay Lm170 for it. He asked the commission to investigate this.

Mr Galea wrote again the following day, on 19 June, pointing out to Judge Manche that the previous day, Labour MP Jose Herrera made three allegations in parliament. Firstly, it was alleged, there had been irregularities in the adjudication of tenders issued by the Maritime Authority; secondly Dr Herrera had claimed there had been hundreds of people who paid between Lm180 and Lm190 to obtain a maritime licence; and thirdly that ships which were over 25 years old were being registered under the Maltese flag because someone may have had some particular interest for this, or had received money to register these ships.

On Thursday, Mr Galea wrote again, referring to another speech by Mr Mizzi, made in parliament on Tuesday, in which Mr Mizzi claimed there had been abuses at the Maritime Authority.

With each of his letters Mr Galea included an unofficial transcript of the parliamentary sitting in question.

On Wednesday Mr Galea, speaking on the adjournment in parliament, also asked the commission to investigate not only the recent allegations, but also any other allegation which may have been made about the authority.