Bernard Grech said that if he wins the election he would have no problem with Adrian Delia remaining on as an MP as long as he is ready to work to help take the party forward.

The PN leadership contender visited The Malta Independent offices for a question and answer session with the newsroom.

Grech and current PN Leader Adrian Delia are in the middle of a leadership contest, after the latter lost two confidence votes in the Parliamentary Group and the Executive Committee. 

During the interview, Grech said that the internal election isn't the be-all and end-all, stressing that his aim is to strengthen the party. He was asked whether, if he wins, Delia will still have a place in the party, whether he will keep Delia close, give him a particular role or if it would be better for him to leave after a leadership race defeat.

"Adrian Delia is part of this strengthening process. Delia has his qualities - he is a determined person with a lot of energy and, if he wants, I am ready to sit down with him, discuss and see how we can work best.”

He said that he recognises that there could be difficulties, but trusts that Adrian Delia will continue to have the party at heart and that he wants to continue helping the party and the country.

"Adrian Delia is fighting the hospitals deal. So that is already an area where he, if he wants, can continue contributing in. I have no problem working together, as long as we work on moving forward and not backwards."

Grech also said he has no problem with Delia remaining an MP should the latter lose the leadership race. "If he is ready to work, I have no problem."

Grech said that he does not want to get rid of people. "I have no problem with Delia remaining an MP, but I have a problem - and so I need to start thinking about it now - as he declared that he does not want to work with certain people. So there could be a conflict there."

Delia must say, if he decides to remain an MP, whether he is ready to work with the people who today he wants to remove, Grech added.

Asked what he will do if Delia as an MP will say he is ready to work and reconcile, but the others aren’t, Grech said that it will be his (Grech) responsibility to ensure that things can work. 

“I am working for unity,” he said.

He compared the situation to that of a family, highlighting that some siblings, while having a good relationship with each other, might have certain aspects of their characters which annoy one another. They still love each other and are happy to be siblings, having values that unite them as a family, he said.

"As long as we agree that we have something in common where we want to move forward, then I believe that it is possible.” He said that the divide in the PN is inter-personal only and not ideological. “So we have the chance to move forward together, as we have a road on which we can agree to walk together."

 

Far ahead in the polls

Grech addressed speculation that he is far ahead of his rival in the polls, saying that the race result is not certain. While admitting that indications are good today, there is at least a month to go before the election. "A week is a long time in politics, let alone a month. I am running after every vote, meeting with people constantly and putting myself before the media for scrutiny."

"Even if there is an advantage today, we must understand that this race can still be lost. I don't have the party structures in my hands, the party media, the party funds... but I have people," he said, adding that there is a lot of enthusiasm among his volunteers.

Deputy Leaders

Told that if he wins the election he will have two deputy leaders who are close to Delia, he was asked whether he could work with them heading into the general election.

"The proof of the pudding is in the eating. I am predisposed to working with everyone, but at the end of the day we must see how this will be implemented in practice. It would be pointless only lowering part of a bridge, because if the other side is not lowered then cars will not be able to cross. Dialogue and agreement are two-way streets, and so the most important thing is to start from the basics. Before we reach the question of how we will work, let’s talk about respect, trust and that authority is not there for someone rule, but to lead the way forward."

He said that if he was aiming to become leader to break this person or the other, or remove elitism, then he would already be sowing the seeds of division. "I am going in for this without having all the solutions. All of us together have the solutions," he said, stressing that everyone must be involved, including people outside of the party.

He said he personally has no problem with the two deputy leaders. He invited them to strive to bring about unity and reconciliation through what they say, do, where they go, what they insinuate and what they offer as solutions. "Even they have a responsibility to help unite the party. We cannot speak of solutions only after a leadership race takes place. We cannot say we will unite the party if today we continue sowing the seeds of division.”  

"At the end of the day even if Adrian Delia is leader, he needs to work with them, and what they could do today can affect tomorrow. I have no problem working with them, sitting down with them, speaking with them. The statute grants them the protection that up to the general election - there is a transitory clause - that they are to remain in leadership, but obviously if one or both decide to resign then I will take the necessary steps so that, even what I want to see in politics and the party, can be done immediately after they resign." He said he wants to see more women in important positions within the party.

Grech has constantly been perceived as being close to the anti-Delia MPs who have been challenging the current leader. He said that the Parliamentary Group surely did not go down the road they did so that he could challenge for the leadership.

While stating that he now has a number of them behind him, he said that “they are not creating my policies or outlining how I will move forward. This doesn't mean that I don't seek advice. It doesn't mean that when I meet with people who support Delia, I do not ask them about certain things to learn more about what was happening in the party over the past three years.” He stressed the importance of seeing the different views of those who opposed Delia and those who supported him.

"It does not mean that since they are behind me today as they believe I am the better choice, that I am in some way controlled or conditioned by them. Not at all. I met with 2/3rds of the Parliamentary Group thus far and I still need to meet more. I am absorbing all that I can to understand the situation. It does not mean that they are part of a team or my strategy."

Asked whether he is worried that the people pushing him to become leader might, after the next election loss, try to kick him out for someone else to take over, he said he is not. "My point of departure is that I am not in this for myself. I heard the call and answered it. I have no problem with that happening. I would have a problem if I wanted to do this solely for myself... But I am doing this as I responded to people's calls and as I believe that I have the qualities in the present circumstances that will give me a better chance to be the person to fix the party.”

Turning to youths, he described them as the present and future of the party and the country. "I have asked a person I have faith in to be the bridge between the leadership, if I am elected, and youths,” he said, while adding that he wants youths to infiltrate sectors of the party.

Abortion

Grech has been asked a number of times about abortion during interviews over the past few days, with many arguing that he u-turned on the topic by first saying that he would welcome a discussion on it, and then saying that if abortion passes through a referendum if he is Prime Minister, he would resign.

He stressed that while the perception is that he made a u-turn, he did not actually make one.

“I said clearly the first time I spoke about this that I am against abortion, but I want to discuss to understand people's problems, not that I want to discuss in order to introduce abortion. I know that is how it was understood, but that was not my position. If I am against abortion, I am against it and I will work for it not to be introduced."

“When I was on Xarabank, I explained that I will work against abortion being introduced, but if the people, in a referendum, decide to vote in favour of abortion, then I am ready to respect that decision. When I say I would respect it, I mean I will not repeat the mistake made in the past by voting against that decision as a Prime Minister. If I would resign I would not be disrespecting the will of the people. I would be respecting it but would also be respecting my own values. So I would choose to halt my political career as I strongly believe that abortion is murder.”

Migration

He was asked about the Prime Minister's handling of migration - talks with Libya to tackle migration, hiring private vessels to hold migrants in quarantine due to the Covid-19 situation - and whether he agrees with the measures.

"The PL government's migration policy is all over the place. There were surely u-turns made in this sector. The reason is that the populist mentality and populist politics leads one to change to accommodate different circumstances or interests. What would I do differently? I would surely not do anything that would kill or put people's lives at risk. If I believe in life, then let us understand that all life is life, regardless of where that person comes from or the colour of their skin. God forbid we do not agree as a people with values, that a human being is a human being.”

He added however, that one cannot push aside Maltese people who feel threatened by those who want to enter the country. “This is a reality and we cannot ignore it."

"I want to implement every measure possible for people to feel safe at home,” he said while adding that there should be a better security presence on the streets.

“We will not turn the country into a police state, but we must show that those who do not respect the country's laws - both if they are foreigners or Maltese – that action must be taken," he said.

He then spoke about educating the public. "Unfortunately there are those who look at a foreigner negatively according to the colour of their skin,” he said, adding that this is something that needs to be tackled through education.