Cyrus Engerer

Cyrus Engerer is a Maltese Member of European Parliament representing the Labour Party.

Convinced that membership augmented Malta's opportunities for growth, he joined the Moviment IVA Malta fl-Ewropa and campaigned for Malta's EU membership during the accession referendum in 2003.

The same year, prompted by the party's positive stand on EU membership, Engerer joined the conservative Nationalist Party (PN).

Engerer read an Honours Degree in European Studies and Communications at the University of Malta, graduating in 2007 with a dissertation on "The Role of the European Parliament: Developments, the Constitution and Future Prospects".

He then obtained a Master's in European Politics from the College of Europe in Bruges, Belgium with a dissertation on ‘Malta Europeanised: Political Parties and Electoral Campaigns’.

Upon graduation, Engerer was recruited at the Office of the Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi as project managed on EU-funded projects.

He later joined the Malta-EU Steering and Action Committee (MEUSAC) and worked as adviser on EU funds to various Ministries, local councils and NGOs.

In a highly polarised society, Engerer was raised in a politically mixed environment with his father being a traditional Nationalist supporter from Sliema, while his mother from Valletta was an activist in the Labour Party, with her family being ardent Mintoff supporters.

Engerer is known for his public stands on civil rights, Malta's national identity and the protection of the environment.

Engerer's first involvement in Maltese politics was related to Malta's accession to the European Union.

At the 2009 administrative elections in Malta, Engerer was elected to the Sliema Local Council, third among ten candidates.

Within the Council he was given the remit on EU affairs, EU funding, youths and sport.

In 2010 Engerer was appointed deputy mayor of Sliema.

Engerer frequently criticised the Nationalist Party's conservative positions, especially on issues related to civil rights and liberties, while he also regularly questioned his party's democratic credentials.

Commentators like Raphael Vassallo noted that his progressive views on divorce and gay rights would have made him more at ease in a European liberal party, than in the traditionally conservative Nationalist Party.

During the last PN General Council he attended, Engerer went as far as hinting that Nationalist Party was cut off from society's realities.

A gay rights activist, he was the leading spokesperson for the Yes campaign at the 2011 Maltese divorce referendum.

In 2021 he was tasked with negotiating the European Parliaments historic resolution on the declaration of the European Union as an LGBTQ Freedom zone, in reaction to the establishment of so called "LGBT-Free zones" in Poland.

Engerer later went on to write the European Parliaments resolution which condemned the laws in Hungary which effectively banned "LGBT propaganda" in the vicinity of schools.

During the referendum campaign for the introduction of divorce legislation in Malta in 2011, Engerer joined the Yes Movement Iva Għad-Divorzju, Iva Għaż-Żwieġ and was also the leading spokesperson for the Stand Up campaign.

The long referendum campaign not only brought the progressive voices together but also led the country's conservative forces (including the Nationalist Party) to hold a joint campaign against divorce.

Notwithstanding the religious pressure that was exerted by the Catholic Church on the Maltese population, the Yes campaign won 52.67% of the votes.

Despite the electorate's clear vote, Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi stated he would vote ‘no’ in parliament, against the will of the majority.

The statement spurred Engerer to declare he would resign from the party's structures, if its leader and Prime Minister did vote against the will of the Maltese.

Engerer stated that "Lawrence Gonzi no longer represents the Maltese population, he has committed political suicide and if he has the country's and the party's interest at heart should resign immediately."

Gonzi ultimately voted against divorce, which led Engerer to resign from the Nationalist Party on 15 July 2011 and join the Labour Party led by Joseph Muscat, who had personally campaigned for the introduction of divorce legislation and other civil liberties.

Engerer joined and became highly involved in the Labour Party.

In July 2011, he became a board member of the party's think-tank Fondazzjoni IDEAT and one of its delegates to the party.

He also formed part of LGBT Labour.

Within the party, Engerer also spearheaded the fight for Civil Rights.

His involvement was particularly prominent in the 2013 Labour Party campaign for the General Elections, where he worked hard to encourage former Nationalist voters to vote Labour.

Labour won with a 54.83% majority.

Following her appointment as Minister for Social Dialogue, Consumer Affairs and Civil Liberties, Helena Dalli appointed Engerer as Chairperson of the Consultative Council for LGBT rights, with the initial task being to provide government with a Bill on Civil Unions as well as a Gender Identity Act.

The Civil Union Act was presented to the Minister at the end of June while the Gender Identity Act was presented at the beginning of August 2013.

From 2014 till 2019 Engerer was the Prime Minister's special envoy to the European Union.

The same year, Engerer joined the cabinet of the Parliamentary Secretary for the 2017 EU Presidency and EU Funding, Ian Borg.

He was elected as a Member of the European Parliament in November 2020.

After he joined the Labour Party the Police of Malta opened an investigation against him, leading to his father's arrest, the opening of a court case against him on spreading pornography and the arrest of his mother on election day.

He himself was convicted for spreading revenge porn and received a suspended two years term imprisonment.

He is the partner of Partit Laburista's Member of Parliament Randolph De Battista.