Television presenter Jean Claude Micallef has been sworn in as a member of parliament after being elected in the casual election held last month to succeed Helena Dalli. The latter had relinquished her seat on the third district in the wake of her appointment as European Commissioner for Equality.

The ceremony took place on Monday morning, when parliament reconvened following the lengthy Christmas recess.

Mr Micallef won 1,883 votes in the casual election, beating Marsascala mayor Mario Calleja, who got 1,773. A former member of the Nationalist Party executive committee and a presenter on Net TV, he had switched to Labour in 2013 and contested the 2017 general election.

In his maiden parliamentary speech Mr Micallef said he was looking forward to this challenge and to work with MPs from both sides. He thanked his family for the continuous support, and those who “believed in him” even before he had made up his mind to contest the general election.

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