More than two months after winning the Nationalist Party leadership election, Bernard Grech is still to appoint his shadow cabinet and PN MPs continue to follow portfolios assigned to them by his predecessor Adrian Delia.

Sources said that the matter has been brought up with the party administration several times in the past nine weeks – since Grech beat Delia on 3 October – but no action has been taken.

Asked why Grech is taking so long to appoint his own team, a spokesman said that “the assignment of shadow portfolios is the prerogative of the party leader who also decides when best to carry out a reshuffle. There are no further comments to make at this stage.”

Delia had reshuffled his Cabinet in April this year, a few months before he was ousted from the post after a number of rebel MPs led an internal process which ultimately forced a leadership election, which was won by Grech.

Every leader normally wants to give his own imprint, the sources said, but in the two months he has been in office Grech has not changed the line-up as established by Delia.

When Robert Abela became Prime Minister instead of Joseph Muscat in January, his first task was to form his own Cabinet. While confirming some ministers in positions they occupied under Muscat, Abela changed others and brought in new faces to give his team a fresh look. Grech, so far, has chosen otherwise.

This has however left holes in the PN set-up.

The duties Frederick Azzopardi had as deputy whip were passed on to Karl Gouder. Azzopardi died in October, and has since been replaced in Parliament by Joe Ellis, who won a casual election. Other duties carried by Azzopardi have however not been reassigned.

Ellis was sworn in as an MP on 9 November, but is still to be assigned any duties within the parliamentary group by Grech.

The portfolio previously covered by Ivan J. Bartolo, digital society, is still without ownership after Bartolo resigned his seat in October to make way for the co-option of Grech.

Delia, according to reports, had declined an offer made by Grech a few days after the leadership election to form part of the shadow cabinet. Times of Malta had quoted a spokesman for Grech as saying that Delia preferred not to take any role.

Grech is also still to convene what, according to the article 75 of the PN statute is to be called the “Leadership committee” (Kumitat tat-Tmexxija), the sources said.

This committee should be formed by the leader, deputy leader(s), the president of the general council, the secretary general, the Social Dialogue President and Political Research President and an executive organisational secretary.

This committee should “draw up the party’s political strategy and ensure its implementation”. It should also see that the political direction agreed with at executive committee level is implemented and consider nominations of employees to fill vacancies at directorship level, head of sections and other personnel in any section of the organisation and commercial entity run by the party.

The party statute also lays down that a consultative council should be set up to include former leaders, deputy leaders and party general secretaries, and who would have retired from any other role they have in the party. This council, the sources said, has also not met under Grech.

According to the statute, this council is to meet three times a year to discuss the party’s work in the previous four months, analyse the state of the country at the time the meeting is held and put forward advice it deems fit in the circumstances. The party leader can invite other people to attend meetings, depending on the subject in hand.

The sources said that, since the statute was approved on 25 June, more than five months have passed and this council has never met.

Delia did not get the chance to hold a first meeting, as he faced an internal uprising that eventually led to his ouster, which arrived before four months had passed since the statute’s approval. Two months into Grech’s tenure, this council is still to be convened.