There must have been some kind of agreement before Konrad Mizzi went on the podium to deliver his first address as Labour Party deputy leader on Thursday.

And the conditions of this agreement appear to have been met by the embattled minister, as a brief nod made by the Prime Minister to the other deputy party leader Louis Grech says it all (see footage).

In the preceding hours of Dr Mizzi’s appearance at the PL general conference, there must have been careful preparation for what the minister was to say. Dr Mizzi has been embroiled in a controversy that has dragged in the whole government with him so much so that there were calls for his resignation from within the parliamentary group, and matters escalated even more this week since the Panama Papers were revealed on Sunday by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists.

The presentation of the motion of no confidence in the whole government, submitted by the Opposition Leader Simon Busuttil hours before the PL general conference session began, must have also increased the pressure on the minister, as well as on the Prime Minister, who has been defending Mizzi since Day One of the controversy, a full 45 days ago.

Konrad Mizzi needed to be careful what to say. He knew that all ears, not only those of the faithful delegates inside the hall, were waiting for his speech. He knew that every mis-step, wrong word or false move would have been pounced upon. And so his words were planned with circumspect before he went on stage.

And it seems that Konrad Mizzi delivered what was scripted to his leader’s expectations, as can be seen from the footage above. The slight, almost inconspicuous nod Joseph Muscat gave to Louis Grech, who was sitting next to him on the main table, gave the game away. Even Mr Grech acquiesced, imperceptibly.

The prime minister was also the first to applaud after Dr Mizzi said he would leave every decision in the PM’s hands, and the others followed suit only when Dr Muscat put his hands together.

Konrad Mizzi’s passing the buck to the prime minister was, in the end, a move that did not surprise Joseph Muscat. It was planned, right to the last detail.

It is now, of course, up to the prime minister to take the cue. Most likely, he will do so on Sunday, when the PL conference ends, just hours before the demonstration to be organised by the Nationalist Party in Valletta.