Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1462347
NEWS 5 maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 23 MARCH 2022 NICOLE MEILAK LABOUR leader Robert Abela has flatly denied securing a pact with Ian Castaldi Paris to install him as Parliamentary Speaker so long as he does not contest the general election. "It was spin reporting – I ex- clude it. There was never such a discussion between us," he said on Monday. PN media portal Net News re- ported last Saturday that Abela reached an agreement with for- mer Labour MP Castaldi Paris to appoint him Speaker, on the condition that he does not con- test the election. Castaldi Paris announced last December that he will not be contesting the election fol- lowing reports that he owes €300,000 to the tax authorities. Media reports indicated that an audit into the MP's finan- cial affairs found close to €1 million in unexplained wealth, although Castaldi Paris said the matter concerned much smaller amounts. According to New News, Castaldi Paris intended on sub- mitting his candidature on the Labour Party ticket despite throwing in the towel late last year, supposedly prompting Abela to offer him the Speaker position. Castaldi Paris faced a string of reports concerning his property dealings and possible bluff with Yorgen Fenech. The Labour MP had admit- ted to MaltaToday of having dreamed up a lofty claim he made to Fenech of being a high-flying property investor in London, after the newspaper approached him over chats he had with Fenech in September 2019. Fenech was arrested two months later in connection with the murder of Daphne Caruana Galizia. Castaldi Paris had said it was pure bluff from his end. He said he has no property, neither in London nor in any part of the world except Malta. The chats revealed that Castaldi Paris, at the time not an MP, had known about the €3.1 million Mdina villa sold to Tumas magnate Yorgen Fenech in September 2019, because he chatted to the businessman just days after signing on the prom- ise-of-sale agreement. Apart from admitting to Mal- taToday that the chats were nothing but bluff, Castaldi Paris insisted that his parliamentary declaration of assets was cor- rect. The MP said he owns two res- idential properties in Lija, two apartments in Santa Venera, and his office in Attard. In October, when parliament reopened after the summer recess, government removed Castaldi Paris as one of its mem- bers on the Public Accounts Committee and replaced him with Jonathan Attard. Last year MaltaToday com- piled a list of all MPs' asset dec- larations to find out who enjoys the highest net worth. In contrast to the alleged €1 million in undeclared wealth, Castaldi Paris reported having €18,200 worth of bank depos- its, with no additional loans or shares. Abela denies pact with Ian Castaldi Paris for Speaker position Ian Castaldi Paris "We are determined, we have the energy and the credibility to act on our plans and make them happen" M I R I A M D A L L I Labour Candidate for the Fifth and Eleventh Electoral Districts Birżebbuġa Iż-Żurrieq L-Imqabba Il-Qrendi Ħal Safi Ħal Kirkop Ħal Farruġ 5 DISTRICT Mdina Mosta Attard Burmarrad 11 DISTRICT Customer care Email 9900 0809 info@miriamdalli.com P A R T I T L A B U R I S T A