Opposition turns down request for pairing

Malta will not be represented at a meeting of the Home Affairs Ministers of the 5+5 countries on Wednesday after the Opposition refused to grant pairing to the government for a vote in Parliament.

The vote will conclude the debate on an address in reply to the address by the President at the State Opening of Parliament.

The 5+5 groups five European and five North African countries: France, Italy, Spain, Portugal and Malta, and Libya, Tunisia, Algeria, Mauretania and Morocco. The meeting is due to be held in Mauretania.

Tonio Borg, Leader of the House, speaking at the first meeting of the House Business Committee this evening asked the Opposition if it could, at least, pair Justice and Home Afffairs Minister Carm Mifsud Bonnici. But Opposition whip Joe Mizzi said the Opposition had already decided there would be no pairing on this vote.

Pairing in an informal arrangement where members of the Opposition are ‘paired’ with members of the government and will not vote if the government MPs are away on official business.

The government has a majority of only one in Parliament and therefore needs all its MPs to be present whenever a vote is to be taken.

Prior to the convening of Parliament the Opposition had said it would consider requests for pairing on a case by case basis until a decision is taken after the new leadership of the MLP is elected.