Prime Minister Joseph Muscat commented for the first time on the Panama Papers this evening, telling Parliament that his first priority is to ensure that the reputation of the financial services centre is maintained. He also said that the Panama Papers had confirmed what Konrad Mizzi had been saying, but investigations would continue and if any irregularity by Dr Mizzi and chief of staff Keith Schembri was revealed, if the millions mentioned by the Opposition were shown to exist, he would dismiss them immediately. Dr Muscat also announced that the Maltese authorities would seek information from the International Consortium of Journalists and Panama itself about the companies from Malta mentioned in the Panama Papers. In a statement to the House, Dr Muscat said the leaks had serious implications to financial centres. Malta, he said, was not an offshore centre but it too felt the pressures which such leaks made. His priority, he said, was to ensure that the financial services sector remained strong, and was strengthened further, amid perceptions that people who used financial instruments did so to evade tax. This was a national challenge which all should involve themselves in...
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