Labour pledges free HRT, endometriosis medicine in women’s health push

Labour will make hormone replacement therapy and medication for endometriosis and adenomyosis available for free on the government formulary, Robert Abela announced on Wednesday, as he set out a series of proposals targeting women’s health, work and safety online.

Speaking at a Labour Party campaign event in Floriana focused on the role of women in society, Abela said a Labour government would draw up a dedicated women’s health strategy and set up a clinic focused specifically on women’s health, including gynaecological check-ups and contraceptive prescriptions.

He said healthcare had traditionally failed to distinguish enough between men’s and women’s needs, insisting the strategy would not remain “on paper” but would be backed by services.

HRT, used by many women to treat symptoms linked to menopause, would be made available by prescription on the government formulary, meaning it would be free of charge. Medication used to treat endometriosis and adenomyosis would also be added to the formulary, he said.

Abela also repeated Labour’s pledge to lower the age for breast screening to 45, saying early diagnosis improved survival rates. HPV vaccination would also be extended, including to men, he said.

The prime minister used the event to frame Labour’s manifesto around wellbeing and work-life balance, saying the party was not promising “everything to everyone” but focusing on what it considered the population’s new priorities.

He referred to previously announced pledges to increase maternity leave by eight weeks to 26 weeks, double paternity leave from two to four weeks, introduce six months of joint parental leave, and provide 28 days of leave during a child’s second year, which could be shared between parents.

On business, Abela said many women were now leading small and medium-sized enterprises and would benefit from Labour’s proposal to reduce corporate tax from 35% to 25% for eligible smaller companies. Self-employed women would also benefit from a proposed cut in their social security contribution rate from 15% to 10%, he said.

He linked those measures to women’s participation in work and leadership, saying Malta had gone from being among the worst in Europe before 2013 to “towards the top”, arguing this was the result of political will and incentives.

Abela also pointed to female appointments under Labour, including Maria Micallef as chair of the Malta Council for Economic and Social Development, women in senior financial institutions and the judiciary, where he said Malta now had its highest number of female magistrates and judges.

The arts and creative sectors

The arts and creative sectors also featured heavily. Abela said Labour would refund 10% of artists’ expenses and offer mentorship in financial literacy, advertising, pricing and basic legal concepts to help artists make a living from their work. Artist and creative start-ups would also benefit from a tailor-made incentives package.

Labour is also pledging to create a digital lab for digital creators and start-ups, giving them space to be more innovative and develop their ideas.

He said work was ongoing on an arts and culture hub in Marsa, which had grown from the idea of a carnival village into a broader space for people involved in culture professionally or as a hobby. A similar site would be created in Gozo, he said.

'Digital violence is real violence'

Turning to online abuse, Abela said “digital violence is real violence”, citing stalking, cyberbullying, revenge porn and deepfake intimate images. Labour is pledging laws against image-based abuse and the abusive use of deepfakes, as well as a revenge porn helpline to give immediate support to victims. Abela also said police would, after May 30, take a more proactive role through online patrols aimed at protecting children and vulnerable people from online abuse.

He compared this to the introduction of community policing, saying police had moved from waiting for people to report crimes at stations to being more present in communities.

On domestic violence, Labour is pledging that victims would be able to testify by video conferencing and that proceedings involving them would be concluded as quickly as possible.

Abela also said Labour was still discussing whether children under 13 should be banned from social media, linking the issue to wider concerns about children’s wellbeing and online threats.