Tourism Minister Konrad Mizzi told a lawyer in court on Monday that it was 'a lie' that his wife stayed at a hotel when she visited Malta.

Dr Mizzi was testifying in libel proceedings he had instituted against Daphne Caruana Galizia, who had alleged in a 2014 blog post  that he was having an extramarital affair with his communications aide Lindsey Gambin and that was the reason why "his wife left for China". The Mizzi couple and Ms Gambin had subsequently filed separate libel suits against Ms Caruana Galizia claiming that the story was unfounded and untrue, intended solely to tarnish their reputation.

Dr Mizzi said that his wife Sai Mizzi had often travelled to Malta over the past two years together with the their children so that the family could spend time together  Sometimes he too would travel to enjoy holidays with the family.

As for accommodation arrangements during his wife’s stays on the island, Dr Mizzi said his wife shared his home while the children stayed with the couple and sometimes with their grandparents.

“What have you to say if I tell you that Ms Mizzi resides at a hotel when in Malta, whereas the children are always left in the care of their grandparents?” defence counsel Joseph Zammit Maempel questioned.

“That’s not true. It’s a blatant lie,” the minister quickly retorted.

In view of the fact that Ms Mizzi is residing abroad, Magistrate Francesco Depasquale, adjourned the case to June when she is to testify via a Skype call.

In a sitting in November 2015, Ms Caruana Galizia had testified how it had been a "very high-ranking police officer", subsequently retired, who had tipped her off about having spotted the then-Energy Minister in an intimate embrace with Ms Gambin.

He had told her that he had seen them one night at the bar of the Tiffany Champagne and Cigar Room at Portomaso, drinking champagne. The two had allegedly been sitting next to each other, their body language indicating that there was more between them than just a professional relationship.

After the minister’s brief cross-examination, lawyer Edward Gatt, assisting Ms Gambin who today was also present in court, informed the magistrate that he would be reserving the right to request that the two libel suits should proceed along separate lines, especially in view of the fact that the Mizzi couple’s case could possibly be prolonged with Skype calls and similar issues.

Lawyer Aaron Mifsud Bonnici and Abigail Critien are representing Dr Mizzi and his wife.