Prime Minister Joseph Muscat, when challenged with questions regarding Keith Schembri's (his Chief of Staff)  Panama company, believes that Mr Schembri's resignation from positions he held on Boards of Directors was enough and that no audit is needed,

The Panamagate scandal emerged when it was uncovered that PL Deputy Leader and Energy Minister Konrad Mizzi had a New Zealand Trust, as well as a company in Panama, a tax haven. It was later found out that Chief of Staff Keith Schembri also had a Panama company

He was challenged with his previous statement, where he said that his Chief of Staff Keith Schembri is not an elected person and is involved in business means that he does not need to go through a tax audit. This newsroom asked whether because of this very fact, being the Prime Minister's Chief of Staff as well as being his right hand man while also having a company in Panama, means he should be audited.

The Prime Minister said - "I don't think it changes from what I have said. I believe that Keith Schembri, who resigned from the board of directors in companies he used to occupy such a post in is enough".

He was later asked about Mr Schembri's silence on the whole issue, to which he said that Richard Cachia Caruana never faced the media. Mr Cachia Caruana later stated that this was untrue and that he had always answered questions put to him by the press (read on for more).

Yesterday, the Prime Minister said - "There is this box which, according to Simon Busuttil contains millions. Konrad Mizzi has denied this. Currently, an investigation is underway to open that box and see what lies inside. If the box really has millions in it Konrad Mizzi will be sacked immediately".

Dr Muscat was told that one of the main points of the whole Panamagate scandal is the fact that Energy Minister Konrad Mizzi acquired the Panama company in the first place, then opened a New Zealand Trust placing the company under it and did not inform the tax authorities within the time frame required by law. This newsroom asked whether he believed this was enough to ask for the Minister's resignation.

Dr Muscat said:"I don't believe this is the main point. The point is whether he was going to declare it or not. I saw his draft declaration declaring all of this. He could have done better, but he declared it."

Dr Muscat said he is convinced that a serious allegation in Parliament has been made, that of Minister Konrad Mizzi having millions in this "box". He said that an Audit has either begun or will soon start.

The Prime Minister chose not to reveal who the audit firm conducting the audit on Minister Konrad Mizzi's Trust is, however said "it's a big independent company and, as far as I know, is not based in Malta. Its an international audit".

"If it results that there were funds and they were removed, Dr Mizzi will not remain a Minister.  If it results that none of this occurred, it still means that a better decision could have been taken (by the minister) or could have been not been taken at all. That however, would also mean that the Opposition Leader would not have told the truth. We must continue to work on improving our standards".

As for whether he believes Minister Mizzi running the PL's electoral campaign would prove to be a liability,  he avoided the question and said - "It would be a liability for the Opposition leader if it is uncovered that he lied".

Another question fired was "If information is so readily exchanged between New Zealand and Malta, how come Inland Revenue only found out about this now?"

He said - "Both are signatories of the OECD, and where information is requested on a person, all information must be shared. The details of this person are now there and the information will be passed over from the New Zealand Authorities".

He said that he did not know Minister Mizzi and Keith Schembri discussed the setting up of Panama companies and New Zealand Trusts together.  He said that they wereadvised by someone in the financial services sector. Asked whether he knows of any other such discussions with other Ministers, he said - "not as far as I know".

Turning to the economy, he said that wages are increasing according to statistics, “but I understand that going from an economy verging on stagnation, which grew to a 6.3% growth rate, there is a need for this growth to benefit everyone.  We did this by removing income tax on the minimum wage and reducing income tax, but more needs to be done”.

“We know there is poverty and we need to address it”. 

I always answered questions by the press - Richard Cachia Caruana

Mr Cachia Caruana was later reported as saying that it was untrue to claim that he did not answer questions from the press.

"I did this consistently. It is part of the job of any chief of staff to keep in regular contact with journalists and I did so. After 1990 I was usually at the Prime Minister’s side when he gave press conferences and, furthermore, as the job developed so did my interface with the press and other institutions. I gave interviews from time to time to objective and bona fide journalists and I gave briefings to journalists.”

He said: "There are no parallels whatsoever between the situation facing Keith Schembri today and that faced by me many years ago. The individuals concerned are different. The prime ministers are different. The time is different. Most importantly, however, the facts are very different.”

He continued: “I never opened a company in Panama when I was running the prime minister's office. Nor did I set up a personal trust anywhere. Nor did I open companies in the British Virgin Islands before or after I joined the prime minister’s office.”

“If I had, the minute their existence would have come to Prime Minister Fenech Adami’s attention I would have been out of the door," Mr Cachia Caruana said.

He said that he had hoped that after his Facebook Post on Sunday, Dr Muscat would have understood that the only help he could give him was the advice to get rid of both Minister Konrad Mizzi and Keith Schembri as soon as possible.