Minister for Education Clifton Grima has denied allegations by the PN that he misled Parliament in answers to parliamentary questions regarding the publication of an auditing report that should have taken place, and on which a decision on a five-year extension of the licence for the American University of Malta was determined in August 2022.

In a statement on Thursday, Grima "categorically condemned" what PN MPs Rebekah Borg, and Justin Schembri alleged, as well as their request for the Speaker to investigate Grima after the Standards Commissioner refused to do so.

The statement read that Grima emphasized that he has never misguided Parliament, contrary to what PN MPs are claiming.

"Minister Grima was correct and clear in his responses to parliamentary questions and provided the requested information," it read.

It read that the "baseless allegations" of PN MPs will continue to be exposed because they are intended solely to hinder the work being carried out in the Higher and Further Education sector.

"Among their allegations, the PN is trying to cast doubt on the audit report, not only when it was conducted but also its public availability. The false and defamatory allegations of the PN MPs are intentionally aimed against what is known to be right, as well as publicly known facts," the statement read.

It also said that the Minister "will not allow anyone to politicize and use false and partisan allegations for purely partisan purposes, the significant work that the Malta Further and Higher Education Authority (MFHEA) is doing."

The statement read that Grima maintains absolute confidence in the MFHEA and all the information provided by them.