PM concerned about tension regarding the Church

Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi expressed concern this morning about tension in the country, especially tension with regard to the Church.

Replying to questions after an activity in Kalkara, he said that like everyone else, the Church had the right to give its views on divorce and to discuss the subject.

Dr Gonzi refused to say how he will vote on the forthcoming Divorce Bill debate in Parliament, but he said that he would vote in such a way as to allow the will of the majority as expressed in the referendum, to prevail.

He said the parliamentary process leading to divorce was very complicated and there were a number of votes which had to be taken, including votes on amendments that had to be made.

Asked if the people who voted no would also be represented in Parliament, Dr Gonzi said they would reiterating that Nationalist MPs were being given a free vote, leaving everyone the freedom to vote according to conscience.

(MPs vote during several stages of the legislative process, including the votes on amendments to the bill, but the all important votes are those at the end of the second reading and the third reading, which have a direct bearing on the Bill as a whole.)

There were unconfirmed reports this morning that during the meeting of the PN parliamentary group yesterday, some MPs argued that since the PN had taken a position against divorce, the Nationalist MPs should be directed to abstain or vote against divorce in parliament, but not contradict the party position.