Updated 12.15pm with PL reaction
The Labour Party wants to continue being known as the "party of failed reforms", Nationalist Party leader Bernard Grech said in an interview on Sunday.
Speaking on the party's TV channel, NET TV, Grech said the cannabis law "once again proved the PN was right" as it failed months after being introduced.
Listing a series of reforms carried out in recent months, including the cannabis, IVF, housing and farming reforms, Grech said that had it not been for the Opposition, some of the much-needed amendments to new laws would not be introduced.
"The Labour Party wants to be known as the party of failed reforms. We were right and we will continue to be proven right," he said.
The PN, he said, never shies away from having a position on important issues but it needs the government to supply it with all the information.
"We need to see the amendments, not just concepts that are still up in the air. It's ridiculous to have a position on something without seeing amendments," he said.
Under Grech, the PN initially said it was in favour of cannabis reform before it suddenly shifted its position and pledged to do all it could to reverse the reform.
A group of 23 NGOs on Saturday called for regulatory clarity in the sector, noting that the failure to set up cannabis associations as contemplated in the law was leading to a "free for all".
Ombudsman and Commissioner for Standards in Public Life
On the appointment of the Ombudsman and Commissioner for Standards in Public Life, Grech said prime minister Robert Abela is always "looking to blame others".
"He is arrogant and always wants things to go his way. Just because Abela is prime minister that does not mean he can act as he pleases, especially if there are rules in place," Grech said.
Abela has presented parliamentary motions to appoint former judge Joseph Zammit McKeon as Ombudsman and former chief justice Joseph Azzopardi as Commissioner for Standards in Public Life.
The PN has said that it backs Zammit McKeon's nomination but not Azzopardi's.
The appointments require at least a two-thirds majority in parliament and would therefore require agreement from both sides of the House.
Grech said his counterpart refused to compromise.
"I have been chasing him for a year and a half. Now that he has decided on a name, he wants just that. That's not democracy. We have our reasons for not agreeing with this imposition. Is he doing this on purpose so that the post stays vacant?" Grech said of Abela.
"That is Robert Abela. It is nothing but arrogance and it is the behaviour of someone who only wants to get his way," he said.
The Labour Party reacted in a brief statement, saying Grech's statements further proved that it is impossible to tell where he and the PN stands on issues.
'Arrogance from the top spilling to ministers'
Grech said ministers have a duty to answer the Opposition's questions in parliament, in reference to Transport Minister Aaron Farrugia's decision to miss parliament.
"If he told the Whip he was on business and wasn't, he lied. If the Whip wanted to protect Farrugia, then he lied to parliament. Either way, this is not on," Grech said.
Farrugia was chastised by the Speaker on Wednesday after it emerged he missed a plenary sitting despite being in the parliament building just hours after it emerged transport officials had assaulted a man while on duty.
"The government needs to provide an explanation as to why Farrugia wasn't there," Grech said.
Moving on Culture Minister Owen Bonnici, Grech said it is unacceptable that the minister tried to hide allegations of abuse and control the narrative. He was referring to a sexual harassment
'Police used to kick patients out of our hospitals'
Meanwhile, Grech also called out the health authorities for kicking out a patient from Mater Dei. Times of Malta reported on Friday how the family of an 84-year-old man who died just hours after being taken home from Mater Dei Hospital is demanding to know why he was escorted out by the police without their knowledge.
"Arrogance...abuse of power...this is Abela's government. Why? Because they have serious problems in the sector. Health Minister Chris Fearne did not even question my criticism of the sector," he said.
The government has given up on solving issues in the health sector, Grech said.