Mark Anthony Sammut rules out running for PN leader
Sammut: There is one person who enjoys consensus and can lead us to victory
Nationalist MP Mark Anthony Sammut, president of the Nationalist Party's General Council, has declared that he will not be in the race to succeed Bernard Grech as PN leader.
He told reporters outside parliament on Tuesday that there was one person who clearly enjoyed broad consensus to take over the reins and lead the PN to electoral triumph - a clear reference to European Parliament president Roberta Metsola, who has, however, not declared her intentions.
Sammut was elected from the 10th and 4th districts at the last general election and was among those whose names had been floating around as a future leader.
He pledged his loyalty to whoever would succeed Grech, and thanked the outgoing party leader for having put the party's interest first, before his own.
Grech announced his resignation earlier on Tuesday, saying it was time for the PN to start "a new chapter". He said the decision to resign was his and his alone, and that he intended to continue serving as a party MP.