A male official at the Malta Philharmonic Orchestra who admitted to sexually harassing a colleague has been suspended with half pay, the government said on Wednesday.

On Friday a 31-year-old Gozitan resident was handed a suspended sentence by a court after admitting to charges of harassment, subjecting his victim to acts of physical intimacy and behaviour with sexual implications, as well as misuse of electronic communications equipment.

His victim submitted a resignation letter in which she explained that she had reported the matter verbally to her superiors but all her reports had been ignored. 

The Arts Ministry said in a statement on Wednesday that as soon as he was found guilty, upon admission, the man was "immediately suspended with half pay".

The case will be heard by the orchestra's disciplinary board once the appeal period is up. By law, parties to a case have 30 days from the date of a court judgement to file an appeal. 

A separate board has also been set up to look into all circumstances linked to the statement of sexual harassment and draw up its own recommendations., the ministry said. 

Earlier on Wednesday, PN MP Julie Zahra said heads should roll following the man's conviction, given the orchestra's failure to respond to the victim's reports about the harassment.