Auxiliary Bishop Scicluna said it would be ‘gravely immoral’ for Catholic lawmakers to vote for gay adoption laws. Photo: Darrin Zammit Lupi

A number of MPs see no conflict between their Catholic beliefs and their role as lawmakers, as they commented on Auxiliary Bishop Charles Scicluna’s remarks about gay adoptions and civil unions.

However, while Labour MPs were more inclined to base their arguments on the fact that Malta is a secular country with a clear distinction between Church and State, Nationalist MPs were more likely to give weight to their conscience when discussing how such decisions should be made.

Bishop Scicluna has declared it would be gravely immoral for Catholic lawmakers to vote for gay unions or gay adoption laws.

Asked to comment by Times of Malta, Education Minister Evarist Bartolo said Catholic MPs could not simply decide according to their religious values, as lawmakers are bound to look after the interests of all members of society.

“My criticism of Bishop Scicluna is not that he expressed his views on civil unions but the fact that he depicted such legislation as a gravely immoral act in a society where there is supposed to be a clear distinction between Church and State.

God forbid a scenario in which MPs do not vote according to their conscience, that would go against our oath of office

“Personally I feel morally correct that I will be voting in favour of this Bill,” said Mr Bartolo.

On the other hand, PN deputy leader for party affairs Beppe Fenech Adami and MP Tonio Fenech argued that every MP should vote according to the values close to their heart.

“The idea that an MP has to put aside his beliefs and detach himself completely from his own Christian values in order to take a fair decision is intrinsically wrong,” said Dr Fenech Adami.

Mr Fenech said: “God forbid a scenario in which MPs do not vote according to their conscience, as that would go against our oath of office in which we swear to take every decision conscientiously.”

He added that if politics ever reached that stage, he would bow out of it.

The spirit of the amendments that the Opposition had moved to the Civil Unions Act was to have a social impact assessment before deciding on the issue of gay adoptions.

Both MPs defended the PN’s stance, saying its pledge was to legislate in favour of civil partnerships but not place such relationships on a par with marriage.

PN MP Charlo Bonnici also said he would be toeing the party line, saying most of the electorate had already expressed themselves in favour of the legislation.

However, he said he supported the PN in its attempt to create a better law and criticised the government for rushing the Bill through.

Labour MP Marlene Farrugia took a cautious approach, saying she would closely follow the debate, including the views expressed by the Church, before reaching an informed decision.

She welcomed the fact there was consensus that the central issue was to protect the rights of adopted children and not whether heterosexual or gay parents should adopt.

Another woman MP, this time from the Opposition, argued that the toughest challenge for lawmakers was to strike a balance and decide according to the common good. Claudette Buttigieg stressed they were not elected on a Catholic platform but on a political one.

“I feel obliged to serve all citizens regardless of their religious beliefs,” she said.

She pointed out that Catholic values need not necessarily be in conflict with secular principles, and most of the time they went hand in hand.

Social Policy Minister Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca said the Church was entitled to voice its views on matters it believed were important, but State and Church matters were separate.

“Labour was elected with a very strong mandate to implement its electoral manifesto, which clearly includes civil unions, and that is what it will keep doing for the rest of the legislature. 2014 will be the year of equality in Malta,” she said.

Government Whip Carmelo Abela said the Church was within its rights to express its views so long as it did not exert undue pressure on lawmakers.

I do not have the right to restrict peoples’ choices

“We are loyal to the Constitution in line with our oath of office, even though we also say ‘So help me, God,’ so an MP must legislate for the common good – including for those who might not necessarily be Catholic.”

Mr Abela said even if he might have some reservations on a personal level due to his Catholic beliefs, this did not automatically give him the right to restrict the people’s choices.