Updated 7.30pm with Labour Party election dates.

Chris Fearne said on Wednesday that he will not seek re-election for Labour deputy leader when party elections come up in September.

His announcement came after a magistrate declared earlier in the day that there were enough grounds for him and several others to stand trial for fraud and misappropriation in the Vitals hospitals case.

Fearne resigned his post as deputy prime minister when the charges against him were filed two months ago but remained Labour deputy leader for parliamentary affairs.

No deputy prime minister has been appointed since, primarily because the Labour statute lays down that the party's deputy leader for parliamentary affairs would be the deputy prime minister when the party is in government.

Fearne said on Facebook that he had decided not to seek party re-election in the national and party interests so that his successor could automatically become deputy prime minister.

He said he looked forward to being able to present his defence in the next phase of the court proceedings and he was confident that the court would establish the truth, which was his innocence.

He noted that a malicious frame-up against him had been uncovered over the past few weeks, costing those behind it more than €6 million. The frame-up was allegedly hatched by those who were among the accused (in the Vitals case), he observed.

Since the court proceedings were likely to take months, he said he was putting the national interest and his respect for the courts first.

The country could no longer remain without a deputy prime minister, which was why he had decided not to seek re-election in September. This was the same principle that had led him to step down as deputy prime minister and withdraw the nomination to serve as European Commissioner.

Malta came first and foremost, Fearne said, quoting a phrase associated with  former Labour leader Dom Mintoff.

He said he would defend himself convincingly and with facts in court. "My integrity outside the courts is identical to that within it," he wrote. 

Labour announces party election dates

The Labour Party later on Wednesday announced that the elections for its two deputy leaders and the party administration will be held between September 13 and 14.

The election for the deputy leaders for parliamentary and party affairs will be held on September 13. Should there be more than two candidates for each of the posts and no one achieves a 50% majority, a second round will be held on September 14 between the top two candidates for each post.

Elections will also be held for the party president, vice-president, international and organising secretaries. Elections will also be held for 12 members of the national executive.  

Nominations will be open between August 23 and 25.