Opposition leader Adrian Delia on Sunday confirmed he settled his pending tax bill as he lashed out against the Labour media which suggested he used party funds to pay the €55,000 due.
The PL media said that Dr Delia made the payment last month, days after the party held a telethon.
Dr Delia made reference to the claims when questioned during an interview on Radio 101. He pointed out that he had been the one to flag the issue in the first place and the final amount paid was in line with established mechanisms in the law.
“I have resolved this issue. The amount is settled. Game over,” Dr Delia said this morning.
“My tax has been paid from my own pocket and not form the telethon funds or by a businessman,” he added.
The PN leader also challenged the Labour media to come forward with evidence to back its claims that he had used party funds to settle his tax bill.
Read: Adrian Delia silent on unpaid taxes
Any claims would be investigated in the most transparent manner, he said, adding this was the lowest level which [Labour’s] newspaper has stooped.
“Labour can no longer say I did not pay the tax, so they are now claiming I used funds raised from the party telethon. We hold about four such events each year so whatever the payment date it would have been close to either of them,” he said.
Dr Delia challenged the Labour media to enquire on the tax status of every single MP in the House of Representatives.
In a statement, the PL said that the PN leader had not explained the sources of the €55,000 and questioned why he had not made a public declaration of such important development.
During the interview, Dr Delia reiterated his categorical stand against abortion while questioning the government’s intention behind its decision to remove the safeguard against abortion from the Domestic Violence Bill.
He said that the party’s concerns were confirmed by the Attorney General’s advice who said that the proposed changes would open this loophole.
On education, Dr Delia referred to a recent survey which said that only 18 per cent of teachers would not consider quitting the profession if presented with a new job opportunity.
He expressed concern that government was not giving the respect due to teachers and educators, saying that recent policy changes on homework had been rolled out with no consultation.
Commenting on the fuel station controversy, he called for a holistic approach based on long-term planning policies regulating traffic, emissions, transport as well as developments.
The stations being built were too large, he remarked.