Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi is not ruling out ordering an independent inquiry into the oil procurement scandal but first he wants to give the police space to investigate freely.

“I always insisted the police should be allowed to carry out their investigations… inquiries, if need be, will be carried out at a later stage,” he said yesterday.

He was answering questions from journalists after he officially inaugurated the Kirkop day centre for the elderly.

The police are looking into allegations, made by newspaper MaltaToday last week,that people linked to Enemalta were given commission in connection with the purchase of oil.

Turning to the Nationalist Party’s electoral programme, and the costing of the proposals announced on Monday, Dr Gonzi insisted they were sustainable.

The Labour Party described the PN’s plans – to fund the €120 million a year it needs to implement its electoral promises through increased government efficiency – as “incredible and unrealistic”.

But Dr Gonzi said: “That comment was passed by (Labour MEP and election candidate) Edward Scicluna, the man who said stipends should stop and health should be paid for.”

“When I hear such assessments and comments from Edward Scicluna, I say that the Labour Party is moving in the completely wrong direction. We believe in our programme and that it is sustainable.”

He said the PN would continue showing results, just as it had in the past five years.