Louis grech vs simon busuttil biography

Analysis Labour delegates have on various occasions defied their leaders in the choice of his deputies, James Debono says in this retrospective of some historical precedents. Perhaps the more recent example redolent of such a deliberate choice was Toni Abela, the deputy leader for party affairs elected shortly after Joseph Muscat was made leader in , together with Anglu Farrugia as deputy leader for parliamentary affairs.

Farrugia had previously failed his leadership bid against incumbent Alfred Sant after the general election but was resoundingly elected as deputy leader in a contest against Chris Cardona, later a close ally and friend of Joseph Muscat. Farrugia, a former police officer who had challenged Sant for the party leadership after the EU referendum election loss, which he had squarely blamed on a vote-buying scheme organised by the Nationalist Party, had been narrowly defeated for the top post.

The change was approved by delegates against one in February , just a day before nominations were opened for the choice of new deputy leader.

Simon Busuttil MOM (born

Mizzi was axed from the role a few weeks later, after Muscat made the fateful decision to keep the errant minister in his Cabinet as the person responsible for public-private partnerships, while removing him as deputy leader. Mizzi was later replaced by minister Chris Cardona, in a contest against Owen Bonnici, both being loyal ministers who posed no problems for Muscat.

The situation was different in , when delegates had to choose between finance minister Edward Scicluna, equality minister Helena Dalli, and health minister Chris Fearne in a contest for the post of deputy prime minister. PL deputy leaders in parliament P. The tradition of electing deputy leaders who counterbalance the power of the leader predates the eras of Muscat and Abela.

For example, despite being considered a friend and ally of Alfred Sant, Evarist Bartolo was defeated in a contest that saw Michael Falzon elected deputy leader for party affairs in Concurrently, Labour also resoundingly elected Charles Mangion in a four-way race that included Leo Brincat, Joe Brincat, and Jose Herrera, for the post of deputy leader for parliamentary affairs.

Another lesson from history is that it is very difficult for a Labour leader to use the post of deputy leader as a stepping stone to the leadership. In fact, Alfred Sant, Joseph Muscat, and Robert Abela, all made it to the top without having served as deputy leaders. In contrast, former deputy leaders like Joe Brincat, Michael Falzon, and Chris Fearne all failed in their bids to become party leaders.

The exceptions to this rule are Dom Mintoff, who was elected Deputy Leader in , and Karmenu Mifsud Bonnici, who was hand-picked by Mintoff in before being confirmed as his deputy by the party conference. A year later, Mintoff designated Mifsud Bonnici as his successor, with the decision again being rubber-stamped by the party conference.