A Labour government would conclude a review of the judiciary by the end of the year and reassess the entire court system, Joseph Muscat said this morning.

Dr Muscat said the review would be carried out by people beyond reproach. He did not say who the Labour Party had in mind.

The Labour leader suggested email and SMS alerts to inform the public about deferred sittings and called on case scheduling to be done electronically.

The review would also look into the way in which judges and magistrates were appointed, with Dr Muscat hinting at Parliament having a greater role but insisting "all options are on the table".

He said a whistleblower act was a priority and suggested two changes to the existing draft law.

The  first change would make the law applicable to past cases, without a cut-off date. The second change would protect whistleblowers from prosecution when their evidence was self-incriminating.