[LIVE] Franco Debono abstains, Speaker casts vote against no-confidence motion

Follow us live at 9am for Parliament's final sitting on the Opposition's no-confidence motion.

Join the debate on Twitter using hashtag #confidencevote - yesterday's live-blog is here [CLICK].

12:43pm As President of the Republic emerged from parliament, crowds gathered outside parliament shouted 'Gonzi, Gonzi'.

12:37pm Works outside MEPA's Hexagon House have caused a power cut at exactly 11:57pm, taking out the power of PBS - that is why there is no broadcast right now.

12:30pm There will be a press conference shortly by the Prime Minister; Labour will hold a press conference at 1:30pm.

12:29pm Opposition leader left parliament. There was some commotion outside parliament.

12:25pm Even Alfred Sant is being booed now.

12:20pm Franco Debono emerges from parliament to the applause of hundreds outside Parliament, while PN whip David Agius appears to have been booed by the crowd. Franco Debono has left the parliament, escorted to his vehicle by police.

12:14pm Speaker casts vote against motion to make it 35 votes against 34, and one abstention.

12:09pm "If the people who had to shoulder their responsability we would not have arrived to this point." He says he will abstain.

12:07pm "I have never loved my country as much as I do now. I am ready to sacrifice myself for the country's best interest."

12:06pm Franco Debono addresses the House. 

12:05pm Both whips say the vote is to be taken immediatly. 

12:04pm The Opposition leader ends his speech. Speaker Michael Frendo explains the procedure to be used. All MPs will be counted and have their names taken down. The Speaker will then ask MPs to vote in favour or against the motion by standing up. The Speaker reminds that visitors should remain silent. 

12:03pm "In November the Prime Minister called for a vote of confidence because the vote of confidence in a minister which passed by the Speaker's casting vote did not guarantee stability. By the Priome Minister's benchmarks, he is politically accountable to ensure stability." 

12:00pm "What happened in this debate does not change the instability. People are not scared of an election but of uncertainty."

11:56am This is a very serious situation. I could mention that Lawrence Gonzi was the last head of state to shake hands with Gaddafi" This provokes a strong reaction from government MPs. The Speaker calls for order. 

11:53am Franco Debono is a bag of nerves. He is grabbing the microphone as if he intends to speak. 

11:50am "If MEPA is a disaster, Transport Malta is a close second. Malta Enterprise is run like a fiefdom, Alan Camilleri (CEO at Malta Enterprise) is the Prime Minister's untouchable."

11:45am "The waste management in the landfills in Mghatab and Ghallis is run like a mafia." 

11:42am The strangers' gallery is packed to the rafters and extra chairs are being brought out by Parliament staff members. 

11:41am "The current Prime Minister is responsible for one quarter of the national debt."

11:38am "You have been asking what I will do on a number of issues. I ask what cuts will government undertake to reach the goal set by the EU to cut 40 million euros from this year's budget."

11:35am Muscat is attempting to answer his critics and justify the motion of no-confidence by providing a long list of issues which need to be addressed. However his speech is hardly inspiring.

11:30am "Another reason is that Malta has the second lowest rate of persons activley particpating in the workforce in the EU"

11:26am Muscat also mentions the treatment of hunters, former bus drivers and owners as reasons for the motion of no-confidence.  

11:25am Muscat also mentions the super yachts contract saga, the whistleblower act which is yet to be introduced, the access and use of personal data by the Prime Minister's secretary and the postponment of primary health reform. He also says that the St John's Co-Cathedral project and the inertia on the IVF law are other reasons for the motion of no-confidence. 

11:19am "Another reason is the water and electricity bills. The honoraria government rewared itself with was described by the Auditor General as a example of bad practice. Air Malta is also another reason. The airline's employees have no idea what their future holds." 

11:15am "Othyer resons for the motion of no-confidence are the state of public transport. The transport task force has only met three times since November. Another reason is Arms Ltd. Government gave out fat contracts to some people. Now it seems governbment has ordered that electricity supply should not be cut off to anybody. Another reason is the BWSC contract and the choice of the polluting heavy fuel oil for the Delimara power station. Smart city is another resaon. We were told that thousands jobs are on the line because the pumping station has not beed dismanteled. I hope this is a lie. Another reason is the White Rocks project." 

11:13am "The Nationalist party has degenerated to GonziPN run by a clique who holds government hostage. We have a heared a flurry of lies. We were told that we will remove university stipends. I give my word that stipends will not be removed."

11:09am "The Finance minister Tonio Fenech made fun of my humble origins but I have never seen a minister of finance make such a mess."

11:08am "The talk about only writing a motion of two lines is ridicilous becdause the motion of confidence tabled by the Prime Minister in November only had one line."

11:02am "I will shoulder my responsability. The business community which not affiliated to Labour has asked for stability. The Prime Minister is unbeatable in rhetoric. This talk does not impress anybody. We have tabled the motion because the Prime Minister abdicated his responsabilities. It is a motion to remove instability. The Nationalist party is no longer what it was. It is now GonziPN. It is the result of a clique of people who hijacked the party. Government MPs might have been instructed what to say in their speeches. It was a surreal debate, with piloted speeches. It looked like watching an ostrich sticking its head in the ground"

11:00am "The Prime Minister's speech this morning was crocodile tears. I will explain why we have tabled this motion of no-confidence. The Prime Minister abdicated from his duty to clear up the situation and ensure that uncertainty is eliminated by calling for a vote of confidence."

10:59am Opposition leader Joseph Muscat addresses the House.

10:58am "It would have been better if Joseph Muscat explained his proposals" 

10:55am Gonzi asks for an extension. Opposition Leader Joseph Muscat says the Prime Minister can take all the time he needs. 

10:54am Gonzi: "Whilst Muscat was telling us about his childhood on Sunday, we were following developments about the forthcoming EU summit on the eurozone crisis."

10:51am Franco Debono shares a joke with Jesmond Mugliett and Mario Galea. He looks to be in good spirits, as do most of government MPs.  

10:49am Gonzi: "We do not want to hear Joseph Muscat's biography. We want to hear his policies on energy, the environment, social policy, education. We want to know what Muscat is proposing about such vital matters."

10:48am Labour's own maverick MP, Adrian Vassallo takes a seat next to former Prime Minister Alfred Sant.

10:47am Debono, still in his seat, jokes with journalists about his phone.  

10:44am Gonzi is listing the number of policies his government introduced in the last few months. Franco Debono's phone rings loudly. Debono cooly turns it off. He is now having a friendly chat with PN whip David Agius. Jeffrey Pullicino Orlando walks in the House. 

10:42am Debono is not seated alone as was the case during this week's sittings. He is seated between fellow PN backbenchers Robert Arrigo and Peter Mifsud.

10:38am "There is no valid reason behind the Opposition's motion of no-confidence." Franco Debono has walked up the aisle and is speaking to the Speaker Michael Frendo

10:36am Gonzi: "I disagree with his methods. I expect him to act according to the rules set by the electorate and the party. If the motion goes through I will immediatly call on the President and ask him to dissolve Parliament. However I believe government deserves full confidence from Parliament." 

10:35am Franco Debono arrives.

10:34am "I have listened to what Franco Debono had to say and as I stated in the past I agree with his propositions. Constitutional reform was not stalled because of government but because the Opposition chose not to participate in the select-committee desiganted to discuss these reforms. I see no big differerences in government to justify a vote of no-confidence"

10:32am "Joseph Muscat warned that government will start a campaign of fear against the Opposition. There is no need for this beacuse the Opposition is frightening."

10:30am "They wanted to gag us because they were scared of what we had to say. The second condenmnable act was to present the motion of no-confidence. They did not have the decency to say that the November vote of confidence was taken after an agreement was reached by both sides of the House. It was not a guillotine motion. Unlike this motion,we had the decency to reach an agreement with the Opposition."

10:23am "During the budget approval 32 votes were taken and these were votes of confidence in government. The Opposition tabled two motions a fortnight ago. One is the vote of no-confidence. The other has been forgotten. The Opposition wanted to restrict the debate to three hours. He wanted to put the country's best interest aside and placed his political opportunism ahead of everything else. He only wanted to grant government one hour and 15 minutes to discuss such an important motion. This was a guillotine motion. They first recognised their mistake and retracted it but later said they had not retracted the motion at all. This wanted to gag our MPs at a time when the Arab world struggled for freedom and democracy" 

10:20am "Joseph Muscat does not tell us what his proposals are."

10:18am "Joseph Muscat has placed his interest before the country's interest in these trying times. This is similar to the Opposition's position on EU accession. Joseph Muscat's oppostion to EU accession was guided by political opportunism. He then changed tact and transformed himself into a member of the European parliament. He was disloyal to the people and the country. He is ready to ride on everyone to reach his goals."  

10:14am "Does anyone in his senses believe that it is in the country's best interest to call early elections. However we will respect the democratic process as we have always done."

10:12am "I will not fall for this blackmail which smacks of opportunism. I will only do what is in the country's best interest. I am no oracle and I am not always right. I have in the past admitted publically of any mistakes I made. Power does not come before everything else."

10:11am "He saw this as an opportunity to blackmail government, not with his poliyics and numbers but with somebody elses vote. The Opposition leader believes that the ends justify the means. I totally disagreee with this. i wpould have done things differently in his place. I would have held the country's interest above the party's interest."

10:08am "We are now facing another difficult situation. We have had a series of disagreements with a member of government. The Opposition has faced similar situations in its recent past. It is completely normal. What is different this time is that the Opposition leader saw this as an opportunity to bring government dow. The hunger for power has overwhelmed him."

10:06am Gonzi: "We have had internal disagreements within government's ranks. We faced difficult and testing times during this legislature. I am not pleading for sympathy. Other countries have fared much worse then we have. But we have always found a way forward. Every internal and external problem was resolved because we asked ourselves what is the countgry's best interes. If need be you humiliate yourself in the country's best interest." 

10:04am MPs are slowly filling in the benches on both sides. Still no sign of Franco Debono. 

10:03am "Stability in economic, financial, social, regional and cultural policies attracts foreign investment and shapes the future of our youth and our country."

9:59am "The fog of war blinds you from seeing what reality demands and what is the most important thing for the country. We are not participating in a television series. We are dealing with the livelihood of our families."

9:57am "I will explain my attitude and my position during recent events. My actions have been guided by one main thought, that is that the country does not need elections right now. What the country needs is stability. We need stability in terms of economic, financial and regional policies."

9:55am "I am grateful that we have discussed this motion for more than three days. This is one of the most important moments in this legislature. This was an initiative of the Opposition leader and nobody else."

9:53am The Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi is now addressing the House. 

9:50am Borg is now speaking about changes to the judical administration overseen by successive PN governments. 

9:44am Tonio Borg is listing government's achievments in foreign policy. He speaks about Malta's role in the Libyan conflict which saw the removal of Gaddafi from power in the neighbouring country. Borg is the Minister for Foreign Affairs.

9:42am Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi walks in and takes his seat. 

9:32am "We expected the Opposition to make sound arguments in order to substantiate the motion of no-confidence"

9:30am "The motion was presented by the Opposition's deputy leader and not by the leader. This might have been the result of reluctance on behalf of the Opposition leader to go ahead with this vote."

9:28am "In over seven and a half hours of debate, only one Opposition member has spoken to explain why the motion was tabled." Borg is now revisiting the 1998 political crisis caused by Dom Mintoff.  

9:26am Deputy Prime Minister Tonio Borg addresses the House.

9:22am "Experience is vital at this point in time. The country's administration is so complicated that it needs experience and intelliegence to lead the countgry. The Prime minister possesses these characteristics and is the best person to lead the country. The Opposition's motion of no-confidence is a one-liner whichh does not explain or motivate the motion." Most MPs are still missing. 

9:18am "This administration has kept the ship steady despite the economic and regional troubles"

9:17am Home Affairs minister Carm Mifsud Bonnici addresses Parliament.

9:16am "I will vote against the motion tabled by the opportunistic Opposition to make sure government can continue the good work it has been doing."

9:13am Agius: "Deputies must be listened but the people's will is a value which must held above everything else."

9:11am Transport Minister Austin Gatt is present this morning. He was notably absent during yesterday's debate. Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi and rebel MP Franco Debono are absent. 

9:09am "A no-confidence vote is an insult to who has worked very hard for the country in the last four years. MPs do not have a blank cheque to do as they like, and they must be loyal to government and their party, while giving their own contribution"

9:08am Agius does not heed Franco Debono's advise that job creation is not the be all and end all. He speaks about government's achievments in job creation. 

9:07am The no-confidence debate commences. PN whip David Agius addresses Parliament. 

9:02am The House is currently reading the orders of the day. Opposition leader Joseph Muscat arrives. He is expected to address Parliament at 11:30am, 

9:01am The sitting begins. Benches on both sides are mostly empty. 

8:20am Good morning! Welcome to MaltaToday's live blog for the last sitting and voting session of the Opposition's motion of no-confidence. You can catch up on Franco Debono's speech yesterday evening here.

And from MaltaToday on Sunday's print edition, we have uploaded James Debono's analysis of Joseph Muscat's general conference closing speech 'From GonziPN to MuscatPL' here [CLICK]