Labour welcomes European agreement on new MEPs

This would see 12 EU Member States, including Malta, having their representation at the European Parliament (EP) increase by 18 seats. Malta will obtain its sixth seat at the EP, which will be filled by Labour candidate Joseph Cuschieri, who came sixth in the EP elections held on 6 June 2009.

Cuschieri, the PL explained, had obtained this right after the EP elections’ result resulted in “a huge victory for the Labour Party”. The PL explained how Cuschieri would be taking up his post as an observer MEP until all 27 Member States ratify the agreement, which would then enable him to be elected officially as an MEP with all the rights pertaining to an MEP.

On Wednesday, the adoption of the sixth seat for Malta in the EP for Cuschieri became a step closer after the much-awaited IGC held in Brussels adopted finally adopted a protocol amending Article 2 of Protocol 36 of the Lisbon Treaty which concerned transitional provisions concerning the EP.

During the last MEP elections which took place in 6 June 2009, when the Nice Treaty was still in force, 736 Members of the EP were elected and were now in office. However, the new Lisbon Treaty which entered into force on 1 December 2009 allocated 751 seats to the EP and gave 18 additional seats to 12 Member States including one to Malta.

Wednesday’s IGC provided the legal basis for these extra seats to be filled. The agreement would now have to be ratified by each of the 27 Member States before coming into force. Following the adoption of the protocol, the EP was expected to invite the 12 Member States to send the 18 MEPs as observers until the amended protocol was ratified by all 27 Member States.

Once this took place, the 18 observer MEPs would be able to take their posts as MEPs with full rights. Malta had already decided that the candidate for the EP elections which came sixth would take up the extra seat allocated for the country, in this case Joseph Cuschieri.

Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi was not present for the Intergovernmental Conference but relied on Richard Cachia Caruana, Malta’s Permanent Representative to the EU, to attend the IGC for the Maltese Government. The IGC took place following a decision taken by EU leaders during the European Council held on 17 June 2010.