Labour MPs want a deadline on parliamentary scrutiny of the Electrogas power station contract.

In the legislature’s first Public Accounts Committee meeting, Labour MPs argued discussions on the National Audit Office’s Electrogas report had been ongoing since December 2020.

Labour MP Alex Muscat said that although PAC discussions usually die a natural death at the end of a legislature, the government had no problem continuing the Electrogas discussion.

Fellow PL MP Clayton Bartolo said a list of 100 witnesses had been presented in the last legislature, with “no end in sight” as to when the subject would be concluded.

“It would be good to set a target date to conclude”, Bartolo said.

The government MPs said a lot of time had been wasted on the Electrogas sittings by summoning the same witness and asking the same questions.

Former MP Konrad Mizzi, who was kicked out of Labour by Prime Minister Robert Abela, filibustered his way through multiple PAC sittings last year.

PAC chairman Darren Carabott assured the committee that it was in nobody’s interest to prolong proceedings. He offered government MPs the possibility of holding parallel PAC discussions on a different NAO report about poverty.

The PN MPs however declined to commit to a fixed deadline for the Electrogas discussion.

Government whip Andy Ellul said the discussion on Electrogas should follow strict timelines, and not turn into a fishing expedition.

Labour member Glenn Bedingfield said that while the government does not fear scrutiny on Electrogas, there were other important topics that need to be discussed too.

The government MPs said it would make more sense to conclude the Electrogas hearings before moving on to another topic.

A list of witnesses on Electrogas is set to be presented by the Opposition during the next sitting, during which the committee will agree on the way forward.