Any vote for Labour candidates in the European Parliament elections would be a vote for the European socialists, whose electoral manifesto backs abortion and its introduction throughout Europe, the PN spokesman on children's rights, Claudio Grech, said on Thursday.

On the other hand, a vote for PN candidates would be a vote in favour of life, Mr Grech told a party press conference. 

He said Maltese MEPs had failed to persuade their European socialist colleagues not to push forward abortion and, instead, respect the different values of the people of Europe. 

In the European Parliament, socialist MEPs such as Edite Estrela and Marc Tarabella had promoted abortion as a human right paid for by the people's taxes. It was only thanks to the European Popular Party that a report on abortion by Edite Estrela was not endorsed by the plenary assembly of the European Parliament. But should the socialists gain a majority in the European Parliament, they would, according to their own manifesto, ensure that abortion was available in all member states of the European Union. 

Mr Grech insisted that it was the right to life which was supreme, especially the life of an innocent baby in the womb.

A process was needed for better acknowledgement of the rights of the unborn and Malta should promote its values in favour of life in the European Union. 

Peter Agius, an MEP candidate, said Nationalist MEPs would work in favour of an EU which recognised the diversity of its member states and safeguarded Maltese values in ethical and traditional matters. 

"It is not enough that PL MEP candidates declare that they are against abortion in Malta if they did not manage to amend the socialist manifesto in Madrid."

He stressed Europe should simply not interfere on issues such as abortion as these fall within the exclusive competence of member states.