Updated 9.55pm
Six Nationalist Party MPs avoided a parliamentary vote which would have denied same-sex couples leave for IVF treatment, after they were prevented from voting according to their conscience by their party.
Former party leader Simon Busuttil and former deputy leader Mario de Marco as well as MPs Therese Comodini Cachia, Karl Gouder, Karol Aquilina and Chris Said did not enter the House when a vote was called, effectively abstaining.
In a statement, the six MPs said that their requests to be given a free vote had been turned down and that they had therefore decided not to participate in the vote.
"In these circumstances, we think the best path to take is one which respects our opinion that this motion runs counter to the principles in which we believe while at the same time respect the decision of the majority of the Parliamentary Group who felt that this motion should be presented," they said.
The motion was subsequently defeated with 37 votes against and 21 in favour, after Partit Demokratiku's Godfrey Farrugia called a division.
Dr Farrugia voted against the motion, saying he did not agree with categorising people. He asked his fellow parliamentarians to explain what they thought was wrong in helping those who sought medical aid to procreate. Beyond partisan differences, the reason for politics was to protect and promote the dignity of persons, he said.
He also called for the Embryo Protection Act to be amended to cater for gamete donation, as long as conditions respecting human dignity were prescribed. The Democratic Party voted against the Opposition Motion.
In a statement, PD said that it believed both major parties should have allowed their MPs a free vote on the issue.
'Legalistic'
Dr Delia has repeatedly insisted that the PN motion was legalistic in nature and sought to highlight incompatibilities in the definition of "prospective parents" between the legal notice and the 2012 Embryo Protection Act.
He reiterated this stance today, opening the debate by saying the party's stance concerned a technical issue rather than a moral one.
If the Government would only commit itself to adjusting the definition found in the Embryo Protection Act, Dr Delia said, the Opposition would immediately withdraw its motion.
'Regressive'
Prime Minister Joseph Muscat had slammed the motion as discriminatory and regressive, since it would effectively leave same-sex couples who underwent IVF treatment unable to access the 100 hours of leave provided to couples by law.
He spoke similarly this evening in parliament, saying the Opposition had not put forward “one coherent argument” on a motion that it had itself introduced.
Despite its intentions, the motion remained discriminatory and “fundamentalist", he said.
Together with Equality Minister Helena Dalli, he said that the then-Labour Opposition had, in 2012, voted in favour of the Embryo Protection Act because it represented a “first step,” however inadequate.
The latter Act would be amended in due time, as promised in the Labour Party’s electoral programme, but Dr Dalli said that she could not wait until then to help those who needed access to medical leave now.
READ: Comodini Cachia leads charge against Delia's IVF leave motion
In their statement explaining their decision, the six abstaining MPs said they believed all working couples should be able to enjoy IVF leave benefits, with no discrimination.
"Negating this benefit even if temporarily is unacceptable," they said.
While they opposed their party's motion, the six MPs said they did not feel comfortable voting along with government members, "because our vote could be interpreted as a vote in favour of government."