Update 7.56pm - Adds PN, MEPs' statement
Former minister Leo Brincat told the EP Budgetary Committee today that he "had no choice" in backing Labour colleague Konrad Mizzi in a vote of no confidence held last May in the wake of the Panama Papers.
Speaking during his hearing as Malta's nominee to the European Court of Auditors, Mr Brincat said his hands were tied by Malta's parliamentary system, which demands party loyalty from MPs and cabinet members.
He told the committee that, had he been in Dr Mizzi's awkward position, he would have "either resigned or offered to suspend myself from the parliamentary group and cabinet" until any suspicions had been cleared up.
"When it comes to PEPs [politically exposed persons] ethics are as importance as legalities, or illegalities," the former minister said.
In a statement issued by the European People's Party, Maltese MEPs David Casa, Roberta Metsola and Therese Comodini Cachia welcomed Mr Brincat's admission that Dr Mizzi ought to have stepped aside after his name emerged in the Panama Papers leak.
"It is clear that the Panama Papers revelations have tarnished Malta's reputation in Europe," the statement read. In a separate statement, the Nationalist Party said the same, noting that Mr Brincat had only managed to pass the grilling with a two-vote majority.
Mr Brincat told the committee that, in the run-up to the no-confidence motion in Dr Mizzi, he had considered resigning. But he feared that doing so would leave him as "a voice in the wilderness", and that he had a better chance of exerting influence if he remained within the fold.
He disagreed with Finnish EPP MEP Petri Sarvamaa's claims that he had remained silent following his vote backing Dr Mizzi, citing a Times of Malta report dated March 22 in which he had warned that "government risks demolishing its own success."
Committee chairwoman and Czech MEP Martina Dlabarjova highlighted concerns about the Maltese government's failure to publish several contracts, specifically mentioning contracts related to the Delimara power station.
In reply, Mr Brincat admitted that the excuse that contracts were not published due to commercial sensitivity was a "thin balancing act".
He said that contracts had to be published as soon as possible to allow the public to scrutinise them.
Asked to explain his stance against EU membership in the run-up to Malta's 2004 accession, Mr Brincat insisted "I was never an anti-European" and argued that the Labour Party of the time had not categorically refused to countenance EU accession under any circumstances.
Maltese EPP MEPs were not so sure about Mr Brincat's history lesson, saying "while we may not share his recollection of his pre-referendum position on EU accession, we welcome his assertion that he was always a true European at heart."