Minister blames Adrian Delia case for limiting legal action against Steward

Updated at 1pm with Adrian Delia's comments

The legal action initiated by Adrian Delia on the hospitals' deal meant the government could not seek further damages from Steward Healthcare Jonathan Attard has claimed.

The justice minister was speaking the day after the government published a 200-page decision by the International Chamber of Commerce.

Speaking on Andrew Azzopardi’s radio programme on Saturday morning, Attard said the government had already been positioning itself to take legal action against Steward but was pre-empted by PN MP Delia’s court case.

Delia’s case saw the Maltese courts annul the hospitals deal because of fraud and collusion in the run-up to signing that deal.

Attard argued that since the contract was declared null from the beginning, the government could not seek damages for what Vitals should have done but failed to do.

“We could not ask for damages for what we should have gained from medical tourism, and the benefits of having the hospitals, because our courts rescinded the original contracts on the request of Adrian Delia.”

The tribunal rejected Steward’s claim that the government had unlawfully terminated the concession and owed it contractual damages.

The tribunal, however, also dismissed the Maltese government's bid to be compensated by the US healthcare company. It said the primary victims of the privatisation deal were the citizens of Malta.

Attard said the tribunal decision dismissed claims that the government paid Steward €400 million for nothing.

“Every cent that the government paid was returned in our healthcare service,” Attard said.

Reacting, Home Affairs shadow minister Darren Carabott said the government itself had argued that it was claiming almost €500 million from Steward.

“If it’s a false claim, why did the government ask for a refund of €487 million plus interest?” Carabott said.

He said there is only one question to ask the government: “Do we agree that we should have never given those concessions?” he said.

No plans to sue Steward - Delia

Contacted for comment, Delia said it is “surreal” for Attard to blame him instead of his own government for the outcome. 

“It is absolutely surreal that Minister Jonathan Attard in his omnipotent judgement, deems to find in some weird manner, not blame government or ministers, who were not even asked to depose testimonies in arbitration proceedings but instead chose to point the finger at me,” Delia said.

He said Attard’s government defended Vitals and then Steward for years as he initiated proceedings to return the three hospitals to the people.

Contrary to what Attard stated, the government did not plan to sue Steward but was increasing the budget allocated to them every budget, from €30 million to €70 million, Delia said. 

“Attard had rather give us a detailed breakdown as to what the government received from Vitals/Steward for the close to €900 million,” Delia said.

“How can the government possibly contemplate that we go a fair deal when after paying close to €900 million, we remain with a derelict St Luke's, a condemned Karin Grech and a new general hospital in Gozo nowhere to be seen."

'A humiliation for Malta'

In a statement, Momentum said the government was attempting to spin “the devastating International Court of Arbitration ruling as anything other than a total humiliation for Malta.”

It said Maltese citizens were not only failed by the hospitals deal but by the government's catastrophic legal failure.

“The government demanded a primary claim of a €487 million refund from Steward, thereby admitting this money was owed to the Maltese people. Instead, the ICC has ordered Malta to pay Steward a net sum of €4.79 million.”

“The government agreed that Malta was defrauded, which is why they asked for the €487 million back. Their failure to retrieve these funds is a demonstration of incompetence,” the party stated.