Prime Minister Robert Abela has formally apologised for the state’s shortcomings in the Daphne Caruana Galizia assassination but backed the government’s mandate and his Cabinet.

“I was appointed Prime Minister soon after the public inquiry into the assassination started. But It is now up to me to apologise for the state’s shortcomings,” he said.

In a press conference, Abela did extend an apology to the Caruana Galizia family and invited them for a formal meeting. However, he did back the work done by the government so far.

“The murder was a dark chapter in the history of Malta and it would be a shame if lessons are not learnt,” he said.

He pointed to reforms to the judiciary and police, along with the guilty sentence of Vince Muscat in the role of the murder. He also insisted that the culture of impunity has already started being addressed under his tenure.

“The government will continue to assure that all resources will be made available to investigative authorities,” he said.

Abela said that justice had to be served not just for the Caruana Galizia family but for the entire nation.

“We will work to ensure the government implements the recommendations of the report,” he said.

Abela, however, regularly sought to make a distinction between his administration and that of his predecessor, Joseph Muscat. He did not denounce the former Prime Minister outright.

He said that he had already shouldered responsibility by resigning, even saying that he does not have a role in the Labour Party and in the government.

However, he once again backed the work being done by his government.

In a report published earlier today, the inquiry insisted that the state must shoulder responsibility for the assassination of journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia.

Some key findings in the 437-page report, include the board’s conclusion that Caruana Galizia’s assassination was either intrinsically or directly linked to her journalism.

The board of inquiry investigating the assassination found that the members of Cabinet failed to act appropriately after the reveal of the Panama Papers and 17 Black.

It also argued that while Muscat was not directly responsible, his actions had led to a culture of impunity that allowed the murder to take place.