Former Education Minister Louis Galea has been chosen by the government as the new Speaker of the House of Representatives, at least for the next two months until the Malta Labour Party elects its new leader, Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi announced yesterday.
In a press briefing at Castille, Dr Gonzi explained that the proposals made by the opposition last month with regard to Parliament’s workings are unacceptable. The government has now come up with a temporary solution – the choice of Dr Galea – until an accord is possibly reached by the two sides on matters that go beyond the Speaker’s appointment.
Dr Gonzi explained that on 21 April, he held a meeting with Acting Opposition Leader Charles Mangion and gave him a letter with the government’s proposals about parliament.
“That same evening, the Labour Party decided to breach confidentiality and issued a statement with their reaction,” he said.
Soon after, the Prime Minister received a letter from the opposition explaining that they cannot take a decision on who will be Speaker and on pairing until the new party leader is elected.
In the letter, the opposition proposed that, until the election takes place, pairing will be ad hoc and that Dr Anton Tabone should remain Speaker while Dr Carmelo Abela should keep the post of deputy speaker.
“With regards to the rest of the government’s proposals, the opposition informed us that these proposals will be discussed after the new leader is elected,” said Dr Gonzi.
The proposals made by the opposition were discussed by the Cabinet and parliamentary group.
Dr Gonzi said that the discussions will remain open and that the government will not take any final decisions until the Opposition Leader is elected.
However, the Prime Minister said that the interim solution put forward by the opposition to keep Dr Tabone as speaker for two months – after which he may be asked to resign – is unacceptable.
“This proposal does not respect the honourable position of the Speaker of the House of Representatives, which is one of the highest roles in the country – the fifth most important,” said Dr Gonzi.
It is not right to ask someone who has served the country for two legislatures to continue as Speaker for another two months with the possibility that he will have to resign, depending on whether the government and opposition agree, he said.
The Prime Minister said that the government has decided to propose Dr Galea as the new Speaker.
He will however be asked to resign if the government and opposition agree on someone else as part of an accord covering other parliamentary issues. If an agreement is not reached, then Dr Galea will stay on as Speaker.
He explained that the Nationalist Party parliamentary group put Dr Galea’s name forward and that no one else had been nominated. When Dr Galea was informed, he agreed to hand in his resignation if the government and opposition reach an agreement, added Dr Gonzi.
The government also agreed to keep on Mr Abela as deputy speaker – a move which Dr Gonzi described as an important concession because the post of deputy speaker was always linked to pairing.
“Since the opposition did not take a decision we could have easily chosen a Nationalist MP as deputy speaker,” he said.
Prime Minister Gonzi said that he is not ready to be in a position whereby parliament will not go ahead on Saturday as planned.
“I hope that after the Labour Party elect their leader then a meeting will be held soon after to see if an agreement about how Parliament will operate will be reached,” he said.
Dr Gonzi said that he informed Opposition Leader Alfred Sant about the government’s decision in a letter. In the letter, the Prime Minister said that Dr Galea accepted to resign in the country’s best interest, if an agreement was reached, so that for the first time in history, there will be a Labour MP as Speaker under a Nationalist government.
Dr Gonzi said that Dr Galea accepted the proposal and added that his vast experience of 32 years in parliament makes him an excellent candidate for the post.