Finance Minister Edward Scicluna has confirmed with The Malta Independent on Sunday his intention to run for Labour Party deputy leader for parliamentary affairs, a post vacated by Louis Grech before the election. Scicluna has been among those mentioned as being in the running to occupy the important role.

The post would automatically signify another important position, that of deouty prime minister.

Contracted by this newspaper yesterday, Scicluna confirmed he would be interested to serve side by side with the Prime Minister. He said that both during and after the recent electoral campaign, requests for him to consider the post of Deputy Prime Minister started becoming conspicuous enough not to ignore. They also came from high officials and influential persons, both from within and outside party circles, he explained.

Scicluna said he discussed the matter with Prime Minister Joseph Muscat himself. “My objective since my first days in politics was, and remains, to serve the country. My ambition is to see our very inclusive progressive movement renew itself into the future. By contesting, I am offering myself both as a potential loyal deputy, but also as an honest broker amongst young future contestants who want to lead the party in future.”

This newsroom carried out an exercise to establish who will be the front runners to take the post of PL deputy leader. It appears, according to sources within the Labour Party, that Finance Minister Edward Scicluna might also be eyeing the post of EU Commissioner once the term of current incumbent, Karmenu Vella, expires in 2019.

“It is up his sleeve and he carries a lot of weight in the EU corridors of power,” a party official told this newspaper when asked to elaborate. Scicluna had spent five years in the European Parliament as an MEP, during which time he forged strong relationships with different political groups.

“He knows how the Commission works and his past four years spent as Finance Minister gave him further insight into how to deal closely with EU institutions. During his tenure, he managed to pull Malta out of the EU’s Excessive Deficit Procedure and ironed out the country’s finances by registering a surplus on the books. He also proved to be very popular with the electorate, having been elected in two districts.

Speaking to this newspaper, Scicluna did not exclude the possibility. However, he said that at this stage he is not looking “that far ahead”.

“At this point I would rather see a proper continuation in the government’s work. Although I do not exclude it, it is too far ahead to even contemplate on the matter,” he explained, while adding that his primary focus now is to submit his bid for Deputy Leadership.

Health Minister Chris Fearne, who was also elected on two districts, had declared his intentions to run for the post of Deputy Prime Minister. His declaration was made public before the election during an edition of INDEPTH on www.independent.com.mt.

It seems that Fearne and Scicluna are not the only interested contenders. Sources in the Labour Party said that it is likely that Helena Dalli will also throw her hat in the race. She has been promoted to handle European Affairs along with Equality, and surely falls within the Joseph Muscat cluster. Plus, the PL would certainly love to have a woman as a deputy leader, also considering that she is the civil rights champion, a sector which is traditionally Labour’s by definition.

Yet her husband’s mix of construction/political/business endeavours may prove to be a disadvantage if she decides to go up against two very popular characters of the likes of Scicluna and Fearne, who are both perceived as humble doers with hardly any controversy surrounding their personas.

According to our sources, PL Delegates will find themselves split on who to choose between the two gentlemen, as they both offer the same level of credibility to the leadership team as had been offered by Louis Grech.

On one hand, there are those who would prefer a younger Deputy Prime Minister such as Chris Fearne, who can easily contest for the leadership post when Joseph Muscat moves out of the picture. On the other hand, if Scicluna goes to the EU Commission in less than two years’ time, the party will need to have a fresh contest all over again.

Fearne is preferred by many, as he is seen as being closer to the people considering the health portfolio which he handled so well over the past two years since he has held the office. He was reconfirmed as Minister for Health after the 3 June election.

Former Tourism Minister Edward Zammit Lewis had also declared his intentions to run for the post of Deputy Prime Minister, and his close friendship with Prime Minister Muscat made him a frontrunner until the 3 June election result, in which he did not manage to get elected. The former Tourism Minister is, in fact, currently awaiting the casual elections to take place to be able to squeeze himself in Parliament. PL delegates who spoke to this newsroom have ruled out the possibility that he will contest for Deputy Prime Minister.