Updated: Divorce issue should be above politics - Joseph Muscat

Labour leader Joseph Muscat promised this morning that not only will he be giving his MPs a free vote if the divorce issue gets to Parliament, he would also ask the people to vote in line with their conscience if the matter gets to be decided through a referendum.

He said during a political activity in Qormi that as a citizen, leader of a political party and leader of the opposition, it would have been easy for him not to take a position on the matter.

“But I believe that leadership has to be shown and one has to be clear and state what he believes in.”

Dr Muscat said that the Prime Minister was not leading but was being led. He had changed his position several times and it would have been better for him had the issue never cropped up. Once it did, he tried to buy time.

There was now a version which said that the Prime Minister had privately committed himself to a Parliamentary debate and a referendum on divorce.

“My position, which I have thought long and hard about, is clear – I agree that a responsible divorce legislation is long overdue in Malta.

“I would be campaigning in favour of the introduction of responsible divorce when families have broken beyond repair,” the Labour leader said.

However, he said that this was a matter of conscience and he will never impose his conscience on others.

“If the debate comes to Parliament, I will say what I believe but all my MPs will be free to take their own position.

“If the issue is to be decided by a referendum, and I am open to this being held, I will also be on the frontline saying what I believe in but I will not ask anyone to follow me and all voters should cast their vote conscientiously.

“If we make a political issue out of this, our children and grandchildren will not forgive us,” Dr Muscat said.

He said that it was somewhat problematic for a Prime Minister who did not agree with divorce to move ahead with a divorce legislation, let alone a referendum.

So the Prime Minister should, today before tomorrow, declare his intentions. He should also give his MPs and the people a free vote.

“This issue should be above politics and a national decision should be taken. There is our children’s future involved,” Dr Muscat said.

Later, Dr Muscat also referred to tomorrow’s debate in the Public Accounts Committee about the BWSC extension to the power station contract.

Speaker Michael Frendo last Wednesday cleared the way for the PAC debate on the matter.

Dr Muscat hoped that no minister would oppose witnesses being heard by the committee during this meeting.

On income tax, the Labour leader said that people were rightly expecting the Income Tax cuts promised during the election campaign.

The government was at least obliged to say what would be the right conditions for it to implement the tax cut, he said.

He called on the government to move for debate in Parliament a motion presented before summer by Labour Gino Cauchi for the Forum to get representation on the MCESD.

Another motion that should be debated without delay was that calling on the auditor general to investigate the situation at ARMS Ltd.

Dr Muscat said he could not understand government’s complete silence when faced by the shocking accusations made in court by Commission John Dalli’s bother Bastjan and Commissioner Dalli’s reaction.

Bastjan told the Court last Thursday that while under arrest at the police depot he was offered freedom if he implicated his brother in a Mater Dei Hospital contract scandal.

Commissioner Dalli said yesterday that there had been a plan to get him out of local politics and destroy the people's confidence in him.

Dr Muscat said that the government’s silence when faced with these allegations is inexplicable and proof of the its weakness.