The Labour Party withdrew from its statute last November the clause entitling it to impose a €15,000 fine on dissenting MEP candidates, it emerged yesterday.
The clause was included in the amended statute in August, raising the fine from €5,000, but it was subsequently removed when the statute was overhauled during a workshop before the general conference in November, a PL spokesman said.
Labour had not announced the move, despite the fact that the issue has been repeatedly raised in the media.
Asked why the removal of the fine from the statute had not been made public, a PL spokesman eventually said Labour leader Joseph Muscat had mentioned it during a meeting at a party club around November, but no one had picked it up. He did not feel the need to issue a statement, even though the matter has been consistently used by the PN.
In fact, it was during the last trickles of a debate in Freedom Square, Valletta, yesterday, organised by the European Parliament Office in Malta, that PL MEP Louis Grech spilled the beans, in reaction to PN MEP Simon Busuttil's rebuttal to insults from the floor that he was paying lip service to the government.
Dr Busuttil said he did not always agree with the party and had the liberty to do so, since, unlike the PL MEPs, he did not have a €15,000 fine to face if he did.
He had described the fine as "scandalous, a disgrace and an affront to democracy", saying it meant Labour MEPs were forced to choose the party and to "shut up, or pay up". Mr Grech said the clause had been removed from the statute and accused Dr Busuttil of raising petty issues.
The MEPs, together with Alternattiva Demokratika chairman and EP election candidate Arnold Cassola, were participating in a debate on 'Social Europe, Social Malta'.
The working time directive and illegal immigration were discussed, with the Armed Forces of Malta being praised for their work in this field.
Referring to a UN working group's visit to detention centres this week, where the detention facilities were criticised, Dr Busuttil said it was obvious that if such centres were built to accommodate a certain number of immigrants and had to take in more, standards would drop.
Prof. Cassola highlighted the lack of political will on the part of Libya, Italy and Malta to tackle the criminal aspect of human trafficking as the source of the problem, while the issue of the "human roundabout shopping" in Marsa was raised from the floor.
The debate was meant to be addressed by the three political leaders, but Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi had to drop out because of other commitments last week and opposition leader Joseph Muscat followed suit.
Education Minister Dolores Cristina was going to replace the Prime Minister, with PL MP Luciano Busuttil taking Dr Muscat's seat, but two days ago they too were replaced by the MEPs, the organisers pointed out.