PN MP Karol Aquilina and Anġlu Farrugia clashed on Monday after the Speaker denied an opposition request to amend a motion calling for a public inquiry into the construction site death of young worker Jean Paul Sofia. 

Aquilina slammed the decision taken by the Speaker as "obscene", further accusing him of being "prejudiced" against the opposition. 

It came after a motion moved by the opposition was debated last Thursday. During the debate, the government moved an amendment removing references to a public inquiry and calling instead for a speedy conclusion of the magisterial inquiry, which is currently under way.

The opposition wants to amend the government's amendments to restore the call for the appointment of a public inquiry.

While rejecting the opposition's request, the Speaker observed that the government's amendments had not been voted upon yet. The vote is due on Wednesday. Therefore the House did not have an amended motion before it and what the opposition was seeking to amend was hypothetical.

Aquilina's comments in parliament on Monday afternoon led to a heated exchange between the pair, with Farrugia at one point threatening to order the PN MP out of the chamber, before suspending the sitting. 

When the sitting resumed, Labour whip Andy Ellul demanded a ruling about Aquilina's behaviour. 

Aquilina asked the Speaker to recuse himself from giving this ruling. 

No ruling has been given so far.

Sofia's mother has urged Labour MPs to ignore the party whip and follow their conscience in the parliamentary vote.

Since the December tragedy, the victim's family, the Nationalist Party and several civil society groups have called for a public inquiry into the tragic incident. However, the government’s position is that a magisterial inquiry into the tragedy is enough to bring those responsible to justice.