Electrogas: Edward Scicluna plays down ‘kitchen cabinet’ quip

Former finance minister Edward Scicluna played down his 2020 comments on a ‘kitchen cabinet’ of advisors to then prime minister Joseph Muscat.

Speaking in front of parliament’s Public Accounts Committee, which is reviewing the Auditor General’s report on the contract awarded to Electrogas by Enemalta, Scicluna said that such ‘kitchen cabinets’ exist in every government. 

“In every constitution, you have a cabinet that meets regularly […] but then it’s up to the prime minister or president to have a closer group that they consult with, bounce ideas with, and so on.”

Scicluna said that he maintained close contact with Muscat, but he was not among the closer group of advisors that Muscat would consult with. 

In 2020, Scicluna had spoken of a “kitchen cabinet” of advisors to Muscat, who made decisions and gave the go-ahead on certain controversial projects.

He made the remark while testifying before the public inquiry into the circumstances that led to the murder of Daphne Caruana Galizia. 

Scicluna insisted that he was not part of this inner core of people that influenced Muscat’s government.

Tuesday’s PAC session was attended by Labour MPs Andy Ellul, Glen Bedingfield, Alex Muscat and Clayton Bartolo and Nationalist MPs Jerome Caruana Cilia, Rebekah Borg and Darren Carabott, who is president of the Committee. 

Scicluna told the committee that the Labour Party had taken the decision to move towards a gas energy solution before the 2013 election. 

However, Scicluna was not involved in the party’s energy plans. He had asked Muscat, who was leader of the party at the time, to present some workings on the project before the election. 

When in government, the gas energy project was spearheaded by Keith Schembri and Konrad Mizzi. Scicluna said he was not involved in the process as “his plate was full”.

Scicluna refused to answer on whether Konrad Mizzi, who was the energy minister at the time, “did a good job” on the power station project.

He said Mizzi would report to cabinet with any updates on the project. This was the extent of Scicluna’s involvement; he said that no one approached him for advice on the power station plant.

Carabott asked Scicluna about the work of the Financial Intelligence Analysis Unit (FIAU), and whether he was kept up to date on the workings of the unit. 

Scicluna said that its former director, Manfred Galdes, would keep him up to date on investigations and the general work of the unit. However, Scicluna said he never received anything from the FIAU on Electrogas. 

Galdes resigned in August 2016, months after the Panama Papers broke out. At the height of the media frenzy of Keith Schembri’s and Konrad Mizzi’s involvement in the Panama Papers leaks, Scicluna had confirmed in parliament that the FIAU was investigating the matter. 

Unconfirmed rumours started circulating that year to the effect that Galdes had handed his confidential report into the matter to then police commissioner Michael Cassar in April.

The PAC was adjourned to 14 December, with power station investors Mark Gasan and Ray Fenech expected to testify.