Prime Minister Joseph Muscat said this morning that during a meeting with Italian architect Renzo Piano they held discussions to establish “what could be done differently” in the Valletta project.

It is unclear whether the Government is planning any changes to the national project. Timesofmalta.com has sent questions to the Government asking for a clear answer and is now waiting for replies.

Dr Muscat met the world-renowned architect at his Paris studio on Tuesday but the media was only officially informed about this visit in a press release sent to newsrooms yesterday.

When asked why journalists - who were present with him in France - were not informed, Dr Muscat this morning said it was not a public meeting. The previous Government used to hold such meetings, he said.

During the meeting with Mr Piano, the Prime Minister said, they spoke about “what could be done differently” and exchanged thoughts on how to develop the project.

Speaking about accusations of a breach in the code of ethics with Parliamentary Secretary Franco Mercieca, he insisted that allowing him to continue practicing his profession as an ophthalmologist, was “common sense”.

He recognised that the parliamentary code of ethics did not, on paper, allow ministers and parliamentary secretaries to work privately.

However, he added, Cabinet members had, in the past, been allowed to continue lecturing and this was to the advantage of students.

He stressed that during this Government’s first Cabinet meeting he had commissioned the review of the code of ethics, which dated back to 1994, and this was now ongoing.

Dr Muscat was speaking to journalists after a visit to Shield Consultants, a risk management consultancy company that inaugurated its new crisis management centre. He congratulated the company for branching out in the sector.

He pledged that his government would not tolerate precarious work and would not grant contracts to companies which did not practice ethical employment.