PN will not rush to early election

The government is not forecasting a June election even if backbencher Franco Debono digs in his heels and refuses to vote with his party on a Budget Bill, according to Nationalist Party sources. An autumn election appears more likely in the present scenario and the government is banking on the Speaker’s casting vote to secure passage of the Budget Bill on May 9. The government’s one-seat majority has been put to the test over recent months by Dr Debono, who has voiced dissent over several government policies and repeatedly left the country guessing his intentions. But in the event that Dr Debono abstains from the May 9 vote – much as he did in last January’s vote of no confidence in the government – the Prime Minister would have to rely on the Speaker’s casting vote to carry on governing. Doing so would buy the government time and allow Lawrence Gonzi and his PN electoral team to establish an election date at some point later in the year. Losing the May 9 Budget vote is not tantamount to losing a vote of confidence because it would leave the Prime Minister free to choose a date when to dissolve Parliament and call an election. On the other hand, losing a vote of...