Roads Minister Jesmond Mugliett denied claims by Labour leader Alfred Sant that a particular contractor had won tenders because he was a very close friend of the minister.

The tenders system for projects worth over Lm250,000 was a three envelopes system, under which the Transport Authority is involved only in the technical evaluation. Adjudication of the financial packet is not done by the authority but by the Contracts Department.

So neither the authority, much less the minister, had a decisive role in the adjudication, he said. And in all the six tenders for transport infrastructure improvements, financed by the European Union, it was always the cheapest offer that had been chosen.

Mr Mugliett said that to substantiate allegations would be a matter of accountability, because an Opposition Leader should be responsible for what he said.