Joseph Cuschieri appears to be having second thoughts on whether he still wants to go to Brussels to take his seat in the European Parliament.

In surprise comments this evening, Mr Cuschieri said that he still has to decide whether to take up his seat in Brussels or not.

“I have not yet been informed on when the sixth seat for Malta is becoming available. When I’m informed, I will decide whether I still want it or not. I am not going to take this seat just for the money involved. If there is no time to deliver politically, I won’t take the seat,” Mr Cuschieri insisted.

The Times last week quoted an EP spokesman stating that the new 18 MEPs from 12 member states who are to be added to the EP following the ratification of a protocol annexed to the Lisbon Treaty are now expected to join the Brussels chamber as fully-fledged MEPs by January the latest.

Asked  to state clearly whether he will take his seat if this becomes available in two months’ time, as expected, Mr Cuschieri still didn’t want to commit himself.

“I can’t tell you yet as I have not taken a final decision. When I take it, I will inform everyone with my position.”

Mr Cuschieri won the right to become Malta’s sixth MEP when he finished in the runner’s up position after the five elected MEPs – three for Labour and two for the Nationalist Party – in the June 2009 elections.

As Mr Cuschieri now seems to be re-thinking his position, his declarations to ditch his MEP seat in Brussels might be welcome news for two other Labour candidates in the 2009 MEP elections – Marlene Mizzi and Claudette Abela Baldacchino – who ended up with the biggest number of Labour votes after Mr Cuschieri.

Mr Cuschieri had contested the last MEP election on the Labour ticket after resigning his seat as an MP to make way for party leader Joseph Muscat, himself a former MEP, to be able to join Malta’s Parliament.

Since then, Mr Cuschieri had been given a job at the PL headquarters.