Prime Minister reiterates denial of secret offshore company links

Prime Minister Joseph Muscat has denied once again claims that he or any member of his family has or had a secret offshore company or bank account, in any part of the world.

Muscat was addressing members of the press after a Socialist and Democrat meeting in Malta on the role of the presidency and the future of the EU.

The Prime Minister denial comes in light of recent reports by blogger Daphne Caruana Galizia, who has claimed to know who the owner of the third Panama Company, Egrant, is. 

A year after the Panama Papers scandal emerged, Muscat said it was an error to remain silent in the wake of insinuations that he was linked with the company, adding that it was actually Brian Tonna, of corporate service provision company Nexia BT, who acquired it as a shelf company. “I will not allow false claims that do nothing except deliberately try to damage my reputation,” Muscat said this morning.

On Tuesday evening, at the Labour Party Annual General Meeting, Muscat categorically denied having any relation to Egrant.

The Panama Papers saw the leak of 11.5 million documents, showing the dealings between Panama-based law firm Mossack Fonseca.

Minister Konrad Mizzi and the Prime Minister’s chief of staff Keith Schembri had been named in the scandal for having secret Panama companies.

The chairman EU’s PANA committee, Werner Langen, that was appointed to investigate the leak, had described Mizzi’s involvement as a “classic case of money laundering.”

Nationalist Party Leader Simon Busuttil this morning appealed to members of the public to come forward with information on Egrant, or any other companies mentioned in the Panama Papers scandal, adding that the party would offer protection to any one who came forward with information.