A casual election is expected to be held in the autumn to fill the seat which is be vacated in the European Parliament when new Labour leader Joseph Muscat is co-opted to the Maltese Parliament.

In terms of EU law, no one can serve as a member of the European Parliament and a national parliament at the same time. Dr Muscat has indicated that he does not expect to resign from the European Parliament until September.

The procedure to fill the vacant seat of any MEP is governed by national law. In Malta’s case, the European Parliament Elections Act says that a “vacancy shall be filled in the manner provided by or under any law for the time being in force in Malta for the filling of vacancies of members of the House of Representatives”.

That means the holding of a casual election, administered by the Electoral Commission, during which votes cast for Dr Muscat at the EP elections will be opened and allocated to the next preference given by the voters, as happens when a local MP resigns.

The law also provides that such a vacancy may be filled by means of co-option by the House of Representatives, also from among the 2004 European Parliament election candidates.

An MEP resigns by notifying the president of the European Parliament. The president will then inform the Parliament, explaining the reasons for the resignation . The European Parliament then informs the member state concerned and invites it to fill in the seat without delay.

Malta’s new MEP will not hold his seat for very long, since fresh European Parliament elections have to be held by June next year.

However a spokesman for the European Parliament in Malta said it was unlikely that Dr Muscat’s seat would remain vacant until that election.