From divorce to IVF, the change decade which kept the PN breathless

Just 11 years ago Malta had no divorce, same-sex couples could not even visit each other as family members when hospitalised, IVF was still the stuff of endless ethical debates about zygotes in parliamentary committees since 2005, police were still hounding youngsters for smoking cannabis, and advocating abortion rights immediately earned you the baby-killer tag. Yet all this changed in a decade where Labour’s reforms pushed the boundaries. But with each change that came, the more difficult it became for the PN to keep its liberal-conservative coalition intact.

1. July 2011 – the Divorce bill

The divorce referendum, in which 53% voted for the civil right, was consultative in nature and parliament still had to approve a bill. The referendum question – proposed and approved by Labour and two rebel PN MPs – clearly set the parameters of the new law, giving conservatives no wiggle-room. But approval was far from a simple formality for PM Lawrence Gonzi, who struggled between personal conscience and his obligation to respect the referendum result.

The result

With 52 in favour, 11 against and five abstentions, the divorce Bill was approved by a majority of over two-thirds of MPs. In the final reading of the Bill, Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi along with Ministers Austin Gatt, Carmelo Mifsud Bonnici, Tonio Borg and Giovanna Debono voted against together with seven other MPs, including Jason Azzopardi, Beppe Fenech Adami and Edwin Vassallo. All Labour MPs, including Marie Louise Coleiro Preca, who had abstained in the second reading, cast votes in favour. A notable absence from the House was that of Adrian Vassallo, who had been the only Labour MP to oppose the Bill in the second reading.

The consequences

It was the vote which defined Lawrence Gonzi as the Prime Minister who, while ensuring the passage of the law, voted against a law approved by a majority of voters in a referendum, thus coming across as a politician who put his own personal convictions above a democracy, something which made the PN even more toxic for social liberal voters in 2013 election.

2. November 2012 – the first IVF bill

The Embryo Protection Bill, which for the first time allowed opposite-sex couples to have IVF in a public hospital, came after a decade of ethical wrangling and probing in House committees, which resulted in a very restrictive law which did not allow embryo freezing, opting instead for the less reliable egg freezing, thus pushing many couples to seek treatment abroad to avoid multiple pregnancies and painful situations.

The result

The Bill was later unanimously approved in third reading after Labour withdrew its amendments related to exceptional cases, to ensure quick passage of the law before a budget vote, which spelt the end of the Gonzi administration.

The consequences

The law was a half-baked attempt to introduce IVF while avoiding contentious ethical questions on the fate of frozen embryos. But it also confirmed that for the PN, the welfare and health of mothers came secondary to the presumed rights of cellular life. At that stage even Labour was ambivalent and not yet ready to commit itself for embryo freezing.

PM Lawrence Gonzi meets the anti-divorce lobby in 2011: the beginning of the PN’s ‘civil liberties’ troubles

3. April 2014 – the civil unions bill

Labour was elected in 2013 with a clear pledge to introduce civil unions for same sex couples. But in the bill Labour went further by giving same sex partners the same rights as married couples including adoption, thus transforming Malta from a laggard in LGBTIQ rights into a global leader.

The result

Parliament gave final approval to the law by a vote of 37 in favour and 30 abstentions. Opposition leader Simon Busuttil said before the final vote that although the Opposition agreed with civil unions, it had reservations regarding child adoptions by gay couples and felt this issue deserved more study.

The consequences    

Opposition members were booed by thousands of people who gathered near parliament to celebrate this historical day, in a reminder of the toxicity of the PN’s conservative brand just months before MEP elections, which saw the party being thrashed again. The abstention was also seen as a sign of weakness on the part of Simon Busuttil who took the easy way out to keep the peace in his party, ending up annoying everyone and pleasing nobody.

4. April 2015 – the Gender Identity Bill

The new law, one of the first of its kind in the world, made it everyone’s right to request the Director of the Public Registry to change the recorded gender and, or, first name, to reflect that person’s self-determined gender identity.

The result

Both government and opposition voted for the bill.

The consequences

Simon Busuttil clearly wanted to avoid a debacle similar to that experienced by the party a year before on the civil unions bill, making it clear that the party had accepted Labour’s agenda on LGBTIQ rights giving his party a breathing space to focus on other issues.

5. July 2017 – Marriage Equality Act

Days after being re-elected with an even stronger majority, Joseph Muscat honoured the pledge to widen the institution of marriage to allow LGBTIQ persons to contract a marriage with their loved ones, be they of the same or a different sex, and also to parent children without having unnecessary references to their gender or biological make-up on their children’s birth certificates.

The result

Only Nationalist MP Edwin Vassallo voted against the bill.

The consequences

Auberge de Castille was lit up in rainbow colours as fireworks lit the sky and thousands celebrated the historical day. Simon Busuttil. who was on his way out as PN leader, sealed his liberal imprint by enforcing the whip on party MPs amidst reservations by several of his MPs on the wording of the law.

6. November 2017 – leave for IVF patients

Just weeks after being elected new PN leader, Adrian Delia sent shivers down the spines of party liberals by presenting a motion calling for the revocation of a legal notice granting prospective parents leave to undergo medically assisted procreation. The Opposition argued that the legal notice was not coherent with the wording of the Embryo Protection Act, which excluded embryo freezing and surrogacy.

Result

Six members of the opposition, namely Mario De Marco, Therese Comodini Cachia, Karl Gouder, Karol Aquilina, Chris Said and former party leader Simon Busuttil. The rebel MPs had previously asked for a free vote arguing that motion went against their conscience. Delia denied their request for a free vote.

Consequences

Coming in the wake of Delia’s first speech as PN leader at the Granaries, when he invoked the ‘religio et patria’ leitmotif, the motion was a clear indication of a rollback on civil liberties in a party still struggling with its identity following two consecutive electoral defeats.

PN leader Simon Busuttil prefers abstaining instead of showing his party split on the vote on Civil Unions

7. April 2018 – ratification of domestic violence convention

The law transposed the Istanbul Convention on domestic violence. The Opposition insisted on a reference to the unborn child in the law, which was not included in the convention.

Result

Nationalist MPs Karol Aquilina, Jason Azzopardi, Simon Busuttil, Claudette Buttigieg, Therese Comodini Cachia, Mario de Marco, Karl Gouder, Chris Said, and Democratic Party MPs Godfrey Farrugia, Marlene Farrugia voted in favour of the bill together with government MPs. Ironically the foremost critics of the PL government on corruption issues found themselves with no choice but to vote with the government on the ratification of an international convention.

Consequences

In this case Adrian Delia had allowed a free vote in his parliamentary group. But the embarrassing stance against an international convention on domestic violence gave Labour an opportunity to ridicule the Opposition. It also coincided with the growing split in the PN between Delia loyalists and party rebels orbiting around groups like Repubblika.

8. June 2018 – IVF law amended to allow embryo freezing

Parliament approved amendments to the IVF law approved in 2012 allowing embryo freezing and enabling same-sex couples and single parents to access IVF treatment in line with the advice of fertility experts who argue that for IVF programmes to be successful they have to include the option to freeze embryos.

The result

Parliament approved the third reading of the draft law on the protection of embryos with 34 votes in favour and 27 votes against. All members of the opposition voted against the law.

Consequences

In an indication that embryo freezing remained taboo for the PN, despite being given a free vote, all MPs rallied behind party leader Adrian Delia as a small crowd of anti-abortion activists protested in Parliament square. The vote suggested that the party as a whole was putting the presumed rights of human cells above medical and scientific considerations. The absence of former minister George Vella, who regarded embryo freezing as a “moral travesty” from the PL bench, also facilitated the passage of the bill.

9. December 2021 – legalising cannabis

Just months before general elections, parliament approved a new law which completely decriminalised personal possession of 7 grams of cannabis, allowing citizens to grow up to four cannabis plants in their own home and permitted the setting up of cannabis associations which can sell members up to 50 grams a month for members.

Result

The bill was approved with 36 votes in favour and 27 against. All PN MPs voted against the bill.

Consequences

The vote was a clear rebuff by PN MPs of their own leader, who had initially hinted that he was in favour of the setting up of cannabis associations to ensure that consumers will not have to rely on the illegal market for their personal supply. While the Opposition remained compact in its opposition to the bill, the contradictions between the line adapted by the parliamentary group and Grech’s personal opinions, clearly undermined Grech’s position in the party.

10. July 2022 – IVF law amended to permit PGT

The amendments widen accessibility to IVF and introduce pre-implantation genetic testing (PGT) for nine hereditary diseases. PGT will allow doctors to choose only healthy embryos for transfer into the woman’s womb, while the defective ones will be kept frozen. Labour had a mandate for the law having pledged to pass the IVF changes in its first 100 days in office, a feat that has been achieved.

The result

The amendments were approved with 66 votes in favour and three against. Former Nationalist Party leader Adrian Delia and Opposition MPs Alex Borg and Ivan Bartolo, disregarded the party Whip and voted against the amendments. Former Minister Carmelo Mifsud Bonnici who could not vote, as he was sick with COVID also supported the rebels.

Consequences

A great majority of Nationalist MPs-including party leader Bernard Grech- dropped their previous ideological opposition to embryo freezing and accepted Labour’s new normal, thus giving a strong indication that the party wants to start a new page on this issue as it had previously done with LGBTIQ rights. But the decision was not an easy with party leader Bernard Grech flip flopping on this issue, initially suggesting that the party was opposed to PGT but finally accepting the bill following changes which put PGT on equal footing with testing on unfertilised ova.

While Delia’s position and insistence on a free vote, gives leadership to an intransigent minority of conservative MPs, signalling more trouble for party leader Bernard Grech if Labour continues to push the boundaries on ethical issues like euthanasia and abortion. But the party’s final vote suggests a welcome realisation by Grech that intransigence and blocking the pursuit of happiness, risk driving the party against a brick wall. And by holding the whip Grech ensured that the revolt was limited to a handful of MPs.