Malta Labour Party MP Joseph Cuschieri is expected to deliver his farewell speech and resign from parliament on 29 September, thus paving the way for leader Joseph Muscat’s entry in the House on 1 October.
Although the MLP is still keeping its cards close to its chest and has still to make its decision public, from what was said during the House Business Committee meeting yesterday it is clear that it will be Mr Cuschieri who will give up his seat.
During the meeting, it emerged that it will be a Labour MP elected during casual elections held to fill up seats vacated by parliamentarians who made it to Parliament from two districts who will be resigning.
And the St Julian’s MP was the only Labour parliamentarian elected via a casual election not to be included in one of house’s committees when Labour MP Joe Mizzi gave the list during yesterday’s meeting.
The probable resignation of Mr Cuschieri confirms media speculation in the first days after Dr Muscat was elected on 6 June.
The Nationalist Party has agreed to cede the 30-minute time adjournment allotted to it when Parliament reconvenes after the summer recess on 29 September to the MLP, during which Mr Cuschieri will give his farewell speech and resign.
Mr Mizzi did not mention the MP by name, but confirmed that he was elected via a casual election.
Mr Cuschieri, who is currently MLP’s spokesman for public works, was the only one out of the six opposition MPs elected via casual elections to be omitted from the list. This is more than an indication that he will be the MP who will speak on 29 September during the adjournment.
The other five MPs who were elected via casual elections were Owen Bonnici, who will sit in Consideration of Bills Committee, Joe Debono Grech will represent the MLP in the Council of Europe, Joe Sammut will sit in the Commonwealth Parliamentary Affairs Committee, Chris Agius will sit in the National Audit Office Accounts Committee, and Gavin Gulia who will sit on one of the European and Foreign Affairs Committee’s working groups, as will Dr Sammut and Mr Agius.
The Leader of the House, Deputy Prime Minister Tonio Borg, will present a motion for the co-option of Dr Muscat which is to be discussed on Wednesday 1 October. A vote will be taken after question time, after which he will deliver a brief speech and then proceed to be sworn in as Opposition Leader by President Edward Fenech Adami.
During the same meeting, Mr Mizzi told the committee that former MLP leader Alfred Sant will sit on the Public Accounts Committee while Karl Chircop, who is receiving treatment in the UK following a stroke, will retain his place on the Social Affairs Committee.
Speaker Louis Galea, who also chairs the business committee, requested confirmation of Dr Muscat’s resignation from the European Parliament in order to avoid legal complications.
Dr Borg explained why legally there should be no problems. The Constitution clearly lays down that an MP is not precluded from also holding the position of an MEP. However, the European Parliament Elections Act provides that a person holding both offices has to choose which one to hold within five working days. Failing to make a choice will result in the renunciation of the office of MEP.
Mr Mizzi assured the committee that there should be no problem, yet stopping short of saying when Dr Muscat will tend his resignation. Dr Muscat is expected to resign from MEP on 25 September.
Dr Muscat will be the first party leader to be co-opted in parliament. Before him, three MPs were co-opted and eventually moved on to become party leaders and prime ministers; Dr Fenech Adami in 1969, Karmenu Mifsud Bonnici in 1983 and Alfred Sant in 1987.