Updated 8.15pm

Jason Azzopardi has suspended himself from the PN's parliamentary group and shadow cabinet, after asking the Standards Commissioner to look into his 2017 stay at an overseas hotel funded by the Fenech family. 

The Opposition MP told Times of Malta he has requested commissioner George Hyzler to launch an investigation into a five-day stay at the Hilton Hotel in Tel Aviv. 

The stay was paid for by the Tumas Group, which at the time was run by Yorgen Fenech, the man charged with complicity in the assassination of Daphne Caruana Galizia.  

Azzopardi, who represents the Caruana Galizia family in court, emailed Hyzler over the weekend following a report about the trip in the newspaper Illum

On Monday, Azzopardi met PN party leader Bernard Grech and they agreed he should suspend himself from the parliamentary group and shadow cabinet until an investigation is concluded. Azzopardi has also asked the party's ethics and disciplinary commission to investigate the matter.

The PN MP has admitted he received a free hotel stay from the Fenech family and described the report as an attempt to silence him in his pursuit for justice for the Caruana Galizia family. He told Hyzler that although he was not meant to investigate matters that happened before his time in office, he was waiving that exemption. 

Earlier, Azzopardi said in a Facebook post that he had contacted Ray Fenech, the uncle of Yorgen Fenech, ahead of the trip to Tel Aviv for a wedding, as he could not find accommodation in the city. 

While media reports claim he spent five days there, Azzopardi insists the trip only lasted three.  

It was only when he checked out of the hotel that he found that Fenech had already paid for the stay, Azzopardi said. 

He added that on his return to Malta, he had returned the favour with a gift for Fenech. 

Azzopardi said he had been relentless in his efforts to get to the bottom of the Caruana Galizia case and all links to those in positions of influence. 

Connections between Fenech and high profile figures in Malta have been cast into the national spotlight in recent years.

Times of Malta has reported on several links between Fenech and politicians, regulators, and even senior police officials.

PL accuses PN of double standards 

In a press conference on Monday, the Labour Party said that Grech had failed his first good governance test.

Reports about his paid stay had exposed the PN's double standards, PL whip Glenn Bedingfield said. 

Bedingfield said that Grech's hands had been tied by Azzopardi "and his clique",  who placed him at the helm of the party.

"Hypocrisy, double standards and lack of credibility are Azzopardi's traits. Through his lack of action, Grech is embracing all of this, and not only confirming that his hands are tied, but that he doesn't walk the talk," he said.

In a statement issued after news that the PN MP had suspended himself, the PL said the self-suspension confirmed that Grech was spineless and had no power over Azzopardi.

"Azzopardi's move is fake. Azzopardi is just a weight around Grech's neck and the PN," the party said.

Sign up to our free newsletters

Get the best updates straight to your inbox:
Please select at least one mailing list.

You can unsubscribe at any time by clicking the link in the footer of our emails. We use Mailchimp as our marketing platform. By subscribing, you acknowledge that your information will be transferred to Mailchimp for processing.