Speaker recalls quoted Standing Order that is no longer in force

Mr Speaker Michael Frendo yesterday said a point of order by Leader of the House Tonio Borg had been raised on the basis of a standing order which had been suspended during the first sitting of this legislature.

Consequently, he ruled, the Chair could not consider the request for such a ruling because the standing order in question was no longer in force in the current legislature.

Dr Borg had asked the Speaker to rule if the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) could hold a discussion on the power station extension contract once this had already been discussed in two sittings by the whole House.

According to standing orders, the House could not discuss the same issue twice. So, he asked, could a committee of the House do so?

The power station extension had been debated by the House before the summer on a motion by the Leader of the Opposition. But the chairman of the PAC had proposed that the matter should also be discussed by the committee.

Labour MPs, particularly House Public Accounts Committee chairman Charles Mangion, said the PAC was different from the plenary session in that the committee could summon and question witnesses. It was also in the public interest that this issue was discussed.

Later, Dr Mangion put off sine die the debate on the power station extension contract, declaring that he would await a ruling on the point of order raised by Dr Borg.

Political observers told The Times that the Speaker’s ruling appeared to clear the way for the Public Accounts Committee to discuss the power station extension contract despite the issue having already been debated by the House in plenary session. However, they pointed out that the fact that on Monday Dr Frendo had ruled that committee members could ask for a vote on the agenda of the same committee could well mean that the discussion might be blocked by the majority of PAC members.