Nationalist MEP David Casa has urged the President to take action, saying that George Vella should "take the only step which can bring this country back to normality."

In his letter, Casa referred to Vella's speech, in which he described "the current situation in our country as one which is ‘not normal’".

"Allow me to add to this fact that not only is the situation ‘not normal’, but it is also an unprecedented one," Casa wrote in his letter.

"It is regretful that in a month that usually brings families, colleagues and friends together over the Christmas period, we are instead subjected to a a period which, using your own words, is the worst case scenario we can envisage for our country.

"In your message, you expressed your wish for this nation to return to normality as soon as possible. This mirriors my thoughts and wishes as well, and I beleive is the shared sentiment across Malta and Gozo – where justice does not do favours to anyone and applies equally for all. Nevertheless, for this to happen or even be remotely possible, a firm step must be taken, and this step is only one that you can take in line with powers vested in you by the Constitution of Malta.

"I have no doubt that your former colleagues in the Labour Party parliamentary group have already communicated their anger at this political crisis to you, in public or in private. This anger is founded on the level of trust they placed in the very people cauing this crisis, and based on a fear of retribution should they act of voice their opinion. To this end, in this situation which you yourself labelled as ‘not normal’, I ask you to take the only step which can bring this country back to normality.

"History judges us on the decisions that we take, especially the ones which are not easy to take at all. Our country is on the brink. Do not let history look back at your tenure as judge the situation as one where options were availabel to you, and these were not taken. In these surreal circumstances, only you have powers vested in you to ensure that Malta has a new Prime Minister today – without delay. I personally beleive in your ability to do the right thing and take the necessary steps to ensure that the interests of Malta are placed before the interests of any individuals and their respective agendas."