Gonzi: we were mistaken on the way we handled honoraria

12:35 Our obligation in assisting the implementation of the Security Council's no-fly zone means that we will allow emergency landings to Malta.

12:34 Labour has not yet condemned the Gaddafi regime and the massacre it has carried out in Libya.

12:30 The honoraria 'story' should have never developed the way it developed, but this should not make us forget what we have achieved in the past three years.

12:28 We were mistaken on the way we handled the increase of honoraria for ministers.

12:23 Opposition leader Joseph Muscat is promising us solutions in two years' time, by which time the world around us would have radically changed. Do we want to leave our future in the hands of Labour?

12:15 If we believe in the PN as a mosaic of beliefs, why should we stop MPs from voting according to their conscience, whether they vote in favour, against or abstain. There is a certainty that this bill will pass, so it would be a mistake to kill the differing viewpoints on this matter.

12:13 The parliamentary majority will be assured to recognise the will of the people. As long as this certainty exists, let's leave the space for those different viewpoints in the parliamentary process so that it delivers the best result. I defend the free vote of each MP.

12:11 We did not ignore the voices of those who were in favour of divorce. We took the discussion to the highest organ of the party itself. Even though the executive committee took a stand against divorce, that same position recognised the differing voices in the party.

12:08 In our battlecry of 'work, justice and liberty', we opened ourselves to those who wanted the dignity of work and the fresh air of liberty.

12:02 This party overcome socialist authoritarianism in the 1980s and since then it strengthened itself as a party open to different beliefs as a popular party - a mosaic of beliefs.

11:58 You know what my values are... today we must bridge both the values of democracy, in respecting the result of the referendum, and the respect of other people's values and opinions.

11:57 I promised seven years ago that in taking the helm of this part and country, I would be doing it my way - with my values - as long as I had the confidence of the PN.

11:53 We're a party that has won the battle of democracy, the party that respects the will of the majority but does not forget the minority.

11:51 We do not shy away from the fact that we are both a democratic party and a Christian party.

11:48 I have the duty to be clear about the consequences of this divorce referendum on us as a party. This was a test for our party.

11:46 The divorce referendum has come and gone... I did not toy with the result. I declared, clearly, that the people had spoken and that this decision has to be respected.

Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi addressing Council.

11:36 This country must avoid the straits that will take us towards Labour's policies.

11:33 Labour plays to the gallery... and it is telling that the party applied for a MEPA permit to have a gallery built outside its headquarter's facade.

11:30 Opposition leader Joseph Muscat has no solutions for this country, and has only proposed a tax on industry... on the other hand, it was the Prime Minister who helped factories keep jobs during the financial crisis.

11:27 We are a party that has offered the best education and healthcare... we have given dignity to the human being with the creation of more jobs.

11:26 We should be rewarding the people's loyalty to us as a party, with our humility.

PN secretary-general Paul Borg Olivier addressing the Council.

11:20 Loyalty is not only valuable in difficult times... loyalty should be present at all times. We should be working towards a victory in the general election.

11:17  The divorce bill is now up for committee stages... it is certainly up to us to look out for 'no fault' children when we come to propose amendments to this bill.

11:14 We can't expect MPs who are against divorce to suddenly disappear... this would be just like the Opposition leader does with his MPs, where he allows pro divorce MPs to be visible, while others are expected not to play their part.

Nationalist MP Francis Zammit Dimech addressing the Council.

11:13 Our house is open to everybody... we are the agents of the change we want to be. We must overcome these challenges we are facing, and do our best to bring victory for the Maltese people.

11:10 Our media can afford its front-pages to what our MPs will be voting on in the divorce debate, while countries like Greece and Spain are on the brink of financial default.

11:08 We have an opportunity to understand what liberty really means for our society... as Christian-democrats we believe that a family should be based on Christian principles, but that doesn't mean that we stand by when there is social injustice in marriage either.

11:07  We built a society that brought about its own change... today it's a mature and emancipated society.

Resources minister George Pullicino addressing the Council.

11:04 Those who thought the PN would be putting down their arms and conceding a walk-over, are mistaken.

11:03 Divorce does not make us, a Christian-democrat party, an irrelevant party.

11:02 Disagreement inside the PN has always led to compromise; with Labour, if you disagree you are out.

10:59 I believe that MPs who cannot vote in favour must abstain, while those who feel their vote guarantees the majority in favour should vote in favour. We know we have a majority in favour of this divorce bill already... we should give space to those who cannot vote in favour of the bill. And it will be good for this divorce bill to pass now, instead of facing it at the next general election - I'd prefer that it is our government, and not Labour's, to respect the will of the people in this referendum.

10:58 Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi has already given his guarantee that this divorce bill will be passing. What is still unanswered is how MPs who said they are against divorce will be voting on this bill. I understand this extreme difficulty they are passing through. These MPs do not have an easy decision to take.

10:57 This is not an easy time for the PN. We've been in government for two decades, we're in the middle of this legislature, and we have just emerged from a referendum in which we took a position against divorce.

Nationalist MEP Simon Busuttil addressing the Council.

10:55 Where are Joseph Muscat's liberal credentials on matters such as healthcare and immigration?

10:53 The value of the family will assume a bigger importance even with a divorce law in our country. We need to adjourn our position on divorce which we took as a party, because we are a democratic Christian-democrat party first and foremost.

10:52 If we do not change, the PN - the oldest Christian-democrat party in Europe - will become antiquated.... we have never been a conservative party.

10:50 We brought a change to Malta in education and communication... and this change has brought our party to a crossroads. We must read the signs of the times. To remain relevant, the PN must strengthen its Christian-democrat values - we must put the human being at the centre of our policies . Class does not exist for us, but human beings do.

Parliamentary secretary Mario de Marco addressing the Council.

10:49 The reason why our situation is not like that of Greece, is because we have Lawrence Gonzi as prime minister.

10:47 We cannot afford having someone like Joseph Muscat promising everything to everyone, turn Malta into a Greece.

10:46 Malta had the seventh highest rate of people in employment in the EU.

10:44 Sarkozy recently said that if Greece collapses, the euro collapses and so will the EU... this is no occasion for us to gain something out of, as I believe Joseph Muscat was probably referring to when he talked about using the power of veto.

10:43 It's been three years of earthquakes in countries overseas, developments which have impacted upon us... tonight in Luxembourg finance ministers will be discussing the difficult situation in Greece.

Finance Minister Tonio Fenech addressing the Council.

10:41 Let's not use the rhetoric of values as a smokescreen for the important developments in social, economic and educational spheres.

10:39 I would like us all to pass through the exam of tolerance... seven years ago, the Prime Minister said Malta had passed from its economic test when it gained accession into the EU. I see divorce today as the beginning of this debate. I think we should pay attention to the philosophical value of the debate rather than appealing to religious sentiment on this subject.

10:38 50 years ago, the British government decriminalised consensual homosexuality. People who opposed this decriminalisation felt such a change would damage Britain's social fibre... 

10:36 We must nurture a critical sense in today's youth, as well as one of tolerance... it's good to question ourselves today. Things change, and not always to the worst. Slavery was considered part of a natural social order, and it wasn't an easy fight to change this natural social order.

10:34 The 'yes' vote that favoured divorce today, is the same yes vote that voted for Europe. You cannot open the window and not let the wind enter. The party that could not read the signs of the times in 2003 did not support EU accession... you cannot stop today's movement of liberty.

10:31 EU accession brought a cultural change among us... the idea that inspired young people to vote for EU accession was liberty.

Prof. Joe Friggiei, former MEP candidate, delivers keynote speech.

10:28 Decisions inside the PN are not top-down... but subsidiary, coming from the bottom.

10:26 The energy bills we are paying are carbon taxes that people like Opposition leader Joseph Muscat should support such 'polluter-pays' measures.

10:25 The economic crisis has helped Labour make a calculated move to the right wing.

10:23 Economic development has also rendered Malta more secular, and ministers should be aware of that.

Nationalist MP Jean-Pierre Farrugia addressing the Council.

10:19 In difficult moments, its values that strengthen... creating work is the highest form of solidarity. Work is a human value that gives dignity to people. Malta has the fifth lowest unemployment rate in the EU.

Stephanie Cutajar, an economist, addressing the Council.

10:16 After seven years of accession, can we consider ourselves European? Our party is at a crossroads... having different ideas is a health thing in itself. I myself am an MP in favour of divorce legislation, and yet I still felt comfortable in a party that took an official stand against divorce.

10:13 European accession gave Malta a better quality of life and a new frame of mind. But solidarity and the value of tolerance and respect of human dignity, justice and liberty have been present in the PN ever since.

Nationalist MP Karl Gouder addressing the Council.

10:11 We need a new revolution and start appealing even more to everybody, and welcome more people through the doors of our party.

10:10 Let's not let people in the civil service damage our government... the civil service should be there to serve both Nationalists and Labourites.

10:08 We need to be a popular party and appeal to everybody and not segregate people of a different viewpoint into a section unto their own (ostensibly a reference to Labour's LGBT section).

10:07 It would not be a mistake for the PN to change its fehmiet bazici  to reflect the times we are living in... and because we are in the European Union.

Nationalist MEP David Casa addressing the Council.

10:05 It would be a mistake for the PN to sell off its values in a bid to win a short-term victory... the people choose us because they know where they stand with us, and because they trust us.

10:03 The PN can keep winning if it stays true to its calling as a party of solidarity, social justice and free healthcare for all, the party of education for everybody, and of tolerance.

10:02 The PN can still win the election in 2013 if it is a party that creates jobs, and a party for all workers.

Nationalist MP Beppe Fenech Adami addressing the Council.

09:59 The PN will always be the party that will group all different opinions under one roof.

09:58 People like myself felt at liberty to say what they wanted on divorce. We didn't feel under pressure - people like Labour MP Adrian Vassallo don't even feel comfortable sitting on the same benches as his colleagues; Labour MP Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca is not even contesting the election.

09:57 Portelli screens images of Greek riots - People should be aware of what is happening in other countries around Europe.

09:55 Without work, there is no civil rights, the transport revolution, the infrastructural projects… we’ve grown accustomed to the creation of work under Nationalist governments.

PN president of the administrative council Pierre Portelli addressing the Council.