Prime Minister Robert Abela said he will be "defending the country’s migration position" in court on Tuesday, in a case filed by detainees who were held on tourist boats back in 2020.
Abela told parliament that he would be testifying in the case along with Home Affairs Minister Byron Camilleri.
The prime minister revealed his date in court while giving a ministerial statement in parliament on Monday, to update the House on discussions held at EU Council level last week.
Without referencing the case directly, he said he would be testifying to defend actions taken during a public health emergency.
In April 2020, at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic and after declaring Malta's ports closed, the government hired private tourist ferry boats and used them to house detained migrants out at sea.
They were only allowed off the boats in June, after fears that one of the boats could be taken over by its restless detainees. By then, some 425 migrants were being held offshore.
A number of them subsequently sued the Maltese government, saying their offshore detention breached their rights.
The migrants, who originated from eight African countries, had fled from Libya in small boats when civil war broke out. When they reached Malta's search and rescue zone they were transferred to four private vessels run by Captain Morgan and Supreme Cruises in an operation coordinated by the Maltese authorities.
Hosting the 425 migrants on four boats out at sea cost taxpayers €1.7 million.
Speaking in parliament on Monday, Abela said the EU Council meeting in Brussels had spent "hours" discussing irregular migration - without reaching a consensus.
Abela said EU member states had to do more to battle human traffickers, arguing that migration is not just an issue for Mediterranean countries but rather the EU as a whole.
"We need to work to ensure that these innocent people do not fall victim to these human trafficking circles, and we must work to ensure that the boats do not leave the coast in the first place," he said.
Abela also spoke about the economy and the importance of the EU Single Market. He said the European Council agreed that the European Commission should 'speed up' negotiations on the Pharmaceutical Package, a package that he said Malta will benefit from because access to medicines will increase.
He also announced that he will be visiting Tunisia next week, highlighting that countries outside of Europe should also show interest in the current political and economic turmoil situation in Tunisia.
He said a recent memorandum of understanding was signed between Tunisia and the EU regarding migration.
"We must be attentive to what is happening in Tunisia so that we prevent a repetition of what happened in Libya," Abela said.
"We cannot let instability grow there and we must help with every possible means because otherwise, the problem will end up at our shores."
Opposition flags lack of forewarning
On his part, Nationalist Party leader Bernard Grech said it was “unacceptable” for the government to only inform the Opposition about the ministerial statement 10 minutes before the speech.
The issue was also raised by Opposition MP Paula Mifsud Bonnici and whip David Agius, who said the lack of advanced notice was unprecedented.
Grech also noted that it was the first time in months that Abela had given a ministerial statement after attending an EU summit.
“He did not give one in February, March or even June,” Grech said, telling MPs that the prime minister had gone almost an entire year without updating parliament on EU negotiations.