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Edwin Vassallo, former Nationalist MP denied a seat in the 2013 elections, wins €76,000 in compensation

Malta’s parliament has changed dramatically since the last general election as MPs decided to step down, resigned in disgrace, or got kicked upstairs. Iva

Robert Abela is not inventing the wheel by resorting to co-options for fresh blood in his parliamentary group. But does it betray a more presidential style of government in which handpicked MPs are more accountable to the leader than to voters, asks James Debono

Updated at 7:30 p.m. with co-option approval  Oliver Scicluna’s co-option to parliament on the government benches will be discussed later today by the Labour Party’s parliamentary group, Robert Abela has confirmed. The Labour leader will also bring up the co-option for discussion in the party executive. “The co-option will be discussed in the Labour parliamentary group today and the executive, although I am not obliged to do so,” Abela said when asked about the surprise move that saw former minister Gavin Gulia resign from MP just 24 hours after winning a casual election. He insisted...

Updated 6.20pm Gavin Gulia resigned from parliament on Wednesday afternoon, minutes after being sworn in after winning a casual election. The Labour MP in a brief statement said that the prime minister had asked him to stay on as chairman of the Malta Tourism Authority in view of the challenges posed by the COVID-19 situation. He was also needed to pilot the authority's 2020 strategic plan. He was therefore resigning from the House.  His departure means that the government is now free to choose anyone to fill the vacant seat, by co-option. More than an hour after Gulia's statement in the Hou...