The government has indicated its willingness to resume talks over the possibility of reaching an out-of-court settlement with former shareholders of the National Bank.

At the same time, the Attorney General is reserving the right to appeal preliminary court decisions upholding claims that the human rights of shareholders were breached when the government took over their shares in 1973.

Asked by Times of Malta to declare the government’s stand following last Thursday’s second court judgment in less than a month in favour of the National Bank shareholders, Justice Parliamentary Secretary Owen Bonnici said the judgments only decided part of the claims. He pointed out that the former shareholders had already appealed another judgment that was decided in the government’s favour.

“The cases are therefore still ongoing and it is only legitimate for the government to safeguard its rights according to law.”

Dr Bonnici said the government was open for more discussions. “There were various attempts at finding a settlement to the issue in the past, which proved unsuccessful.”