Latest Update- News Portal Briefing
Times of Malta reports that The police stopped and checked 7,000 vehicles in the last quarter of 2020 as part of their efforts to enforce discipline on the roads.
MaltaToday reports that Eurostat figures show that the construction industry grew by 4.3% in the third quarter last year when compared to the same period in 2019
Newsbook reports that A team of three psychiatrists entrusted with assessing state witness Melvin Theuma took the stand on Tuesday morning.
TVM reports that L-Azzjoni Kattolika Maltija (Malta’s Catholic Action organisation) has said in a statement that some people are knocking on people’s doors and collecting money on behalf of the organisation as well as selling tickets.
Updated 1230 – Afternoon Update
Covid-19 update
The Health Department reported 200 new cases of coronavirus in the previous 24 hours, with 148 recovering. The number of active cases has reached 2,835. 3,481 swab tests were carried out in the past 24 hours.
Meanwhile, the number of deaths linked to Covid-19 has reached 242. 13,002 vaccine doses were administered until yesterday.
Largest delivery of vaccines arrive in Malta
The largest delivery of vaccines arrived yesterday, almost three weeks after the country started providing vaccines from Pfizer- BioNTech and Moderna.
Engineer Karl Farrugia, the chief executive of this unit responsible for the purchase, storing
and distribution of the vaccine, told TVM that this was possible because Malta had long negotiated in this regard.
He told the newsroom that: “Malta made prior efforts to communicate with Pfizer to increase the doses before all this happened, therefore when they decided to reduce the doses, it did not affect us that much. If we persisted with the same doses, we would have been very badly affected. With the way we worked today, we should receive a consignment
which is double that originally agreed before all the changes were made”.
Trips are being made with an Armed Forces of Malta escort, apart from a 24-hour guard of the vaccine storage by armed forces and security officers.
7,000 cars stopped by police in three months
The police checked 7,000 vehicles in the last three months of 2020, issuing hundreds of tickets in the process.
Most related to vehicle lights which were not functioning, licence plates not affixed properly, drivers or passengers including children not wearing seat belts or drivers not being properly licensed.
Tickets were also issued because off tinted glass, overloading and because of people not wearing a mask in line with Covid-19 regulations.
In November, 13 were found in possession of drugs and two were drink driving. One person was found in possession of pepper spray and two firearms.
Fourteen people were found drink driving last month. 13 were overspeeding.
Updated 0845 – Newspaper Review
The Independent reports on the case against the hospitals deal filed in 2018 by then PN Leader Adrian Delia. Taking the witness stand, former Prime Minister Joseph Muscat defended the deal with Vitals.
L-Orizzont quotes former Prime Minister Joseph Muscat who said that the hospitals run by Steward still belong to the public. He was testifying in court in a case by previous Opposition Leader Adrian Delia against the Vitals deal.
In-Nazzjon says that Joseph Muscat confirmed a clause in the hospitals deal that would award Steward €100 million by the government if the contract is revoked. The former Prime Minister said the concession made sense in Malta’s healthcare context.
The Times reports that fees for the residency programme is set to rise by more than double from the current €30,000 to help the economic recovery. The scheme grants residency rights to third-country nationals but not citizenship.
L-Orizzont asks Medical Association president Martin Balzan whether the Public Health Superintendent should take the Covid-19 jab, as suggested by columnist Kristina Chetcuti. Dr Balzan said the decision would attract criticism either way.
The Independent speaks with Rota president Michelle Attard Tonna who said that authorities disregard the needs of non-car users. She criticised policies that prioritise car traffic over alternative means of transport.
The Times says that the police have identified two women who shouted racial abuse at a teenage player during a football match in the women’s under-19 league on Sunday. The 16-year-old spoke up about the incident on Facebook after the game.
In-Nazzjon covers a meeting between the Nationalist Party and the Sports Journalists Association. PN Leader Bernard Grech said that he would like to see more awareness and recognition of the value of sport in life.
Morning Briefing
PN Shadow Cabinet reshuffle expected
Nationalist Party MPs were called in for a meeting with leader Bernard Grech on Monday as a reshuffle of their duties was reportedly under way from yesterday afternoon. The process is expected to continue today. This reshuffle is expected to take the Nationalist Party to the next General Election, which is due by no later than next year.
Muscat defiant in Vitals case
Former Prime Minister Joseph Muscat said that he has full confidence in the Prime Minister and the government on the way forward with regard to the privatisation of three public hospitals.
Muscat defended the deal, saying it brought improvements in the national healthcare sector with an important investment from abroad. However he rejected claims it was a done deal despite investors having had a previous agreement.
For the fourth time, former Minister Konrad Mizzi failed to respond to his summons claiming he had returned from the UK and was therefore under mandatory quarantine.
Price of Maltese residency set to more than double
The price of acquiring Maltese residency is set to more than double, as the government seeks to plug the financial hole created by the Covid-19 pandemic. Legal amendments were tabled in Parliament yesterday evening.
Residency gives third-country nationals the right to live in Malta and spend up to 90 out of 180 consecutive days in other EU countries.
Covid-19 Update
Health authorities reported 154 new cases of coronavirus in Malta on Monday, with 136 recoveries, in the previous 24 hours. This means that the number of active cases continue to increase, reaching 2,784. These cases were identified through 3,239 swab tests. The number of total cases has reached 15,588.
The daily update also referred to the number of vaccine doses administered, which till Sunday stood at 11,705.
Two male patients were the latest Covid-19 fatalities. They were aged 73 and 84. Malta’s death tally now stands at 239.
CDE News
